Dreams of the Heart
by XxSilly LilyxX
Summary: Like adventure? How about tragedy? Crazy action? A little humor? Spoon wielding gnomes with a personal vendetta against sneaky bears? This story has it all and more! What more could you want? Murlocs? Got that too. R&R plz! Updated Chap.6 on 02 09 08!
1. Author's Corner

**Author's Corner**

Salutations all you fans, would be fans, curious lurkers and literate ninjas! This is just a section I thought would help me to be able to update faster and bring my fans (or ninjas) the story more frequently. My chapters are pretty long, so instead of waiting months or whatnot to post them, I was thinking I should post them in parts and let you know when I update here.

Admittedly, this is not originally my idea (this author's corner dealy). I stole it from Nevix (Who writes "Take me as I am" on this site), but I thought it was such a great idea, I couldn't help it. So, I will begin posting snippets of chapters so that all you have to do is check here to see if and when I have updated a chapter. If this is inconvenient or annoying in some way, feel free to contact me and I'll go back to just putting up completed chapters every now and again. Thank you for reading thus far and I hope to see all of you in for the long run!

_Lil_

**Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to Blizzard's World of Warcraft. My characters are original and my own, but based in the universe of World of Warcraft. **

Chapter One -- _Color of a Shattered Heart_: Complete

Chapter Two – _A Betrayal Amongst Sisters_: Complete

Chapter Three – _A Journey For Two_: Complete

Chapter Four – _Murlocs, Mysteries, And Mountains, Part 1_: Complete

Chapter Four – _Murlocs, Mysteries And Mountains, Part 2_: Complete

Chapter Five – _The Curse of Friendship_: Complete

Chapter Six -- _To Desolace And Beyond_: In Progress

**First Update: May 5, 2007**

**Second Update: May 15, 2007**

**Third Update: February 9, 2008**

**PS: Sorry for the long absence, but I should be updating this as I update it on the World of Warcraft RP forums.**


	2. The Color of a Shattered Heart

World of Warcraft is property of Blizzard Entertainment, all rights are reserved to them. My story takes place in the World of Warcraft universe and the characters are my own unless specified.

**Chapter One: The Color of A Shattered Heart**

* * *

_No one knew who had left the human infant on the rim of the moonwell. That night in the town of Dolanaar had been like the others before it; tranquil and serene as only the hush of sleep drifted on the gentle, night breezes. The babe neither wailed nor cried, but rather cooed and babbled contently, bathed in the soft, diaphanous light from the moon overhead, the luminous orb filling the infant's fixated eyes._

_A large, bright star winked mirthfully in the ink-colored sky off to the babe's right, as if attempting to draw attention from the intense beauty of the pale, dignified moon. The child's gaze was snatched from the moon in a quick jerk of the head, reaching out with chubby hands futilely grasping air. The sudden movement made the child rock onto her side, still trying to clasp the brilliant light in her hands._

_The child managed to teeter on the edge of the moonwell before falling into the glowing water. Hearing a splash, two sentinels on the night patrol went to investigate. They approached the moonwell cautiously, peering past the rippling surface of the water. A small, dark shadow floundered around helplessly, sinking quickly to the bottom of the pool. Thinking it to be a small animal, one of the night elves reached in and pulled the drowning creature out, her mouth forming into the shape of an O as she realized it was a human infant._

_Her partner gasped sharply, looking around for a parent. Nothing stirred in the shadowy surroundings. Suddenly, her partner began tapping her shoulder fervently. Turning, she looked at what her companion was gesturing to. The tiny female infant squirmed uncomfortably in the elf's outstretched arms, water from the moonwell falling from the infant as gleaming, tear-shaped droplets. The child paused in her distressed wriggling to gaze ponderingly at the night elf for a moment._

_The child's human eyes glowed dazzlingly, just as their own, as a cloud passed by the moon overhead. The two women looked to each other, as the babe's eyes once again rested on the radiant sphere above as the night sky cleared, her two tiny hands determinedly stretched out attempting to seize it, as the moon appeared to be so close, yet so very distant, slipping from her grasp only to leave it's warm presence on fingertips, spurring her to try again... _

Trisana awoke to warm sunlight gently caressing her cheek, the thin veil of light showering over her as if she were naught but a plaything of angels. She remained in bed a moment longer, relishing the first tranquil moments of awareness. Hardly taking a moment to sit up and yawn, the girl leap out of bed as a tangle of long, lanky limbs, pausing briefly to pull back the thin sheets and smoothing them down. Shedding her nightgown, Trisana danced her way to her wardrobe, throwing open the large doors in excited glee.

She was unable to stop the smile that spread readily across her youthful face, drawing out a gown that had been hidden in the corner of the wardrobe. The color of a flawless blue sky, the gown was trimmed in white tresses with delicate, ornate patterns stitched into bust of the light, silken material. Trisana merely gazed down upon the dress for a long moment, drinking in the sight of the garment she had longed to wear for many seasons, wanting the moment to be etched into her mind to be revisited in years to come. The gown was for a special occasion, one that only happened once in a young elf's life.

The formal event, a rite of passage of sorts held in the grandiose elven capitol of Darnassus, encouraged night elf children, once they became of age, to decide and proclaim their chosen way of life, either choosing to continue in the family's tradition, or choosing to forage a new path for the generations to follow. While Trisana was not of elven descent by blood, her adopted parents were, and was thusly allowed to participate in the celebration.

Kysis and Nahlia Moonpride were loving, nurturing parents, respected and well-liked druids within the small village of Dolanaar, caring for their adopted daughter as if she were their own. Her heart fluttered in anticipation as she hugged the gown to herself before slipping it on. She would make her parents proud, she promised to herself, buttoning the dress with nimble fingers. The day to make all of Darnassus remember the name of Moonpride was here, and she was not about to let it pass by unprepared or without dignity.

Her impossibly white tresses, tinted with just a hint of iridescent cerulean, were brushed tenderly, pulled back behind her oddly pointed ears with a smooth, azure ribbon. Satiny slippers were placed on her feet, topping off the elegant ensemble with a silver chain draped delicately around her slender neckline. Holding her breath, Trisana timidly approached the full length mirror in the tidy corner of her room. The air that she had encased inside her lungs escaped as a astonished squeak of mirth.

Her glowing, pupil less eyes widened dramatically at her reflection, staring back at the unfamiliar yet strangely beautiful girl upon its reflective surface. Trisana's face flushed in an awkward embarrassment, reddening her normally rosy hued complexion, as she curtsied experimentally before the mirror. "Trisana, we are to be off soon," a sweet, feminine voice gently urged from behind the shut bedroom door.

"Just a moment!" The girl flashed a charming smile at her reflection. Perfect lift of the lips, just the right amount of visible teeth. She was ready. Trisana pranced towards the door, swirling about in graceful twirls. The airy dance made her dizzy, so when the ground suddenly rushed to meet her, there was no warning nor cry of surprise.

Frowning with just the slightest pout of her lip, she thought to herself, _Okay, I don't believe I'll be doing that in Darnassus..._ Picking herself up, she set her chin determinedly, smoothing the wrinkles from her dress. Then, in a triumphant, un-ladylike march, she swung open the door, as if daring the world to throw its worst at her feet. And, as if answering this defiant challenge, the world did just that.

Mussing over her daughter fondly and bringing her in for a tight embrace, Nahlia Moonpride did her best to blink back the joyous tears that threatened to surge forth. "Do not fret, Trisana, you will do just fine. Be sure to speak clearly and project your voice. Stand straight, do not slouch. And most important, smile and be proud. After this moment, you will depart on a new journey in your life. Greet it with welcome arms and it shall do so to you in return," the petite woman advised softly, adjusting Trisana's necklace with a sniffle.

Taking her mother's teary-eyed advice, a warm smile graced Trisana's features as she replied with unswerving confidence, "I will mother, I promise." With a trembling lower lip, the proud and emotional woman embraced her slightly embarrassed daughter once more before relinquishing her to her father. The towering, dignified man offered her a gentle smile, creating creases in the corners of his eyes.

"Whatever path you choose, know that we will be proud and support your decision, just as we did your sister. Where as she has already began her druid training here in Darnassus, your time has come to begin training of your own. I know you will make us both just as happy as your sister has. Elune herself could not have blessed me with daughters I could be prouder of."

With that said, he leaned forward to lightly plant a kiss on the top of her forehead, whispering just as he began to pull away. "Choose from the heart, Trisana. For only your heart knows the desires of your soul. The mind may deceive you and become torn with indecision, but the heart will always guide you to the one and only true path. Remember this." The radiant girl firmly nodded once, his words buzzing in her ears as her lithe form swelled up, her face beaming from the implication of his fond words.

The Temple of the Moon was packed with a multitude of elven families crowding near the gaping entranceway, all exchanging a few last words before the ceremony began. As the multicolored mass began to shift as faces and bodies turned to face the breathtaking statue of Elune, the elven youth began their ascent to the very top level of the Temple, forming single lines on either side upon the twisting ramps.

Kysis gave his daughter a small push, sending her off as he pulled his wife close, watching her head begin to follow the other youth. Trisana, focused intently on her walk as she tried to mimic the elegant, womanly stride of her mother was almost sent spiraling into the damp grass underfoot as a hand darted out from the crowd and grasped her wrist in a vice grip. Her gaze rose sharply to meet a familiar, scowling face.

"Do not embarrass us, Trisana, I am warning you," Ellisah, her adopted sister and biological daughter to her adopted parents hissed close to her face. "It is only by the grace of Elune that you were even _allowe_d to participate in this ceremony. And it will only be by the grace of Elune that will refrain me from destroying every pleasant moment and every whimsical dream of yours if you so happen to humiliate _my_ family any more than your presence has. Just get this over with so I can return to being as far away from you as possible."

Before Trisana could even stammer a hurt-filled replied, Ellisah spun away from her darkly, rushing to greet her parents whom had missed the entire encounter. Trisana continued on her way up the ramp, mentally shaking her sister's callous words from her mind. There was little time to do anything else but smile in spite, as the ceremony began with the arrival of the High Priestess Tyrande, and the Archdruid Fandral Staghelm.

The pair entered together, with Fandral slightly leading the way, causing the congregation to fall into a respectful hush. As the pair approached the softly babbling moonwell, they split, Tyrande to the left and the Archdruid to the right. They both came to a stop near the beginning slopes of ramps on their respective sides, facing the patiently waiting sea of faces before them.

"We will begin the ceremony now. May Elune bless this day and guide our children to honor and prosperity," the High Priestess declared in a soft, stately manner. The Archdruid added to this in his customary imposing and commanding tone. "The name of the child, the name of their parents, and their chosen course of apprenticeship shall be stated clearly and articulately for all to hear and praise." With a nod from Tyrande at the first child by her side, the ceremony began.

The first elven youth, a shy, soft spoken male made his way to the moonwell, clicking his heals together as he stood before his kin. In a surprisingly deep, treble voice, the boy proclaimed, "I am Satares Willowdawn, son of Yannus and Desria Willowdawn. I choose the path of the hunter. This is my destiny. My future starts now." A harmonious cheer echoed off the Temple walls as the mob recited, in unison, "_May the light of Elune illuminate your path_," the child bowing stiffly in response.

Staghelm motioned for the next youth to step forward, and so the ceremony continued on in this fashion until Trisana finally stood at the Archdruid's side. The man eyed her for a long moment, peering down his aquiline nose at her, before nodding curtly, indicating that it was her turn.

Trisana wisely decided to disregard the scrutinizing look Staghelm had given her, keeping her head held high and a smile on her face. With each landing of her foot, her heart beat a little faster, her insides doing incredible, jittery acrobatics. But Trisana managed to maintain her poise and composure, her sister's words briefly flittering through her mind, only to be replaced by those of her father._ ...the heart will always guide you to the one and only true path..._

And with those words spurring her forward, making each step she took confident and sure, there was no doubt to cloud her mind as to her decision as she solidly planted her feet in front of the moonwell. The few seconds of silence seemed to linger in the air weightlessly as Trisana scanned the faces of the crowd, coming to rest upon the encouraging expressions of her parents and a piercing glower from Ellisah. Straightening herself up, raising to her full height, Trisana inhaled long and deep. This was it; the first step towards the beginning page of this new chapter in her life.

"I am Trisana Moonpride, daughter of Kysis and Nahlia Moonpride," she began, the words flowing distinct and clear from her mouth with a practiced ease. Holding her parent's gaze, the next phrase burst from the well of her heart, ringing across the Temple as it spilled from her eager lips.

"I choose the path of the druid. This is my destiny. My future--"

"...Is impossible!"

These words seemed to strike Trisana as if they were corporeal, burning her ears and causing the back of her eyes to sting. There was no cheering, no blessing. Nothing but a lifeless, stifling silence hundreds of pairs of eyes bore into the girl before the moonwell, ravishing the pure sanctity of her exposed and vulnerable soul. As her tightened heart began to submerge itself in an empty, frigid abyss, Trisana's gaze fell upon the Archdruid who had been the one to interrupt her proclamation and crush the fragile, glass case which had encompassed her hopeful dream.

"It's a shame your parents, as you call them, failed to tell you this," Staghelm began, his words seeping into Trisana's ears like a corrosive poison to her brain, "but you cannot become a druid. You are _not_ of Kaldorei descent, despite your appearance, and you _cannot_ enter the Emerald Dream so long as human blood runs through your veins. You can never attain the druidic powers you seek. This is a fact of nature, a law which cannot be broken. I would advise you to try again and this time, choose something more fitting for your...heritage."

The agony of every syllable that left his mouth severed every thread of confidence and pride she had been fervently clasping onto. As soon as those strings were cruelly snapped, the world before Trisana became nothing more than a blurry medley of nauseating colors as her eyes began to brim with burning tears. She could not do what the Archdruid suggested. Trisana could not think of a time in her sixteen years of life where she did not envision herself as becoming a druidess, providing longevity to the Moonpride name as a family of respected druids.

And now, to find out she could not become what she had dreamed of for so long...it was too much. Only one distinct thought raced through Trisana's muddled and devastated mind, and so she obeyed it. She ran. Trisana shoved her way through the sea of people, bursting out of the Temple just as violent sobs tore through her slight frame. Just above her weeping, she could hear her parents calling to her, chasing after her.

Trisana did not stop, the ribbon from her hair sliding off, letting her hair stream behind her in a wild dance about her head. She ran as fast as her trembling legs would carry her, all the way to the entrance of the city where she finally collapsed along the side of the road, dampening the grass with saline teardrops.

And she prayed, praying with all of her heart and soul that the moment would pass and everything to work itself out for the best. Not only was her beseeching left unheeded, but she would pray yet again to relive that moment over and over again for eternity, if only she could have avoided the next series of events that would haunt her for all her days to come...

* * *

Coming Soon – _Chapter Two: A Betrayal Amongst Sisters _

_Ellisah had warned Trisana, and now, only the intervention of Elune herself can save Trisana from her sister's wrath. However, Ellisah's plans backfire, leaving only death and sorrow in the wake of her betrayal..._


	3. Lilam Meets A Rogue

**WaFfLe TiMe WiTh LiLaM PrEsEnTs**: _Lilam Meets A Rogue_

* * *

It was a good day, Lilam could feel it. She had almost gone half a day without causing any trouble or getting into any mischief. It was a new record for her. To celebrate, she had bought herself a shiny new bobber for her fishing pole; a small, plastic, neon orange murloc that waved its arms with every wave oscillation. She admired it proudly, twirling her fishing pole in her hand as she waited for the tram to take her to Stormwind, only looking up as a human male came to stand beside her, waiting for the tram as well. 

Clearly a rogue in mien and appearance, Lilam couldn't help but drag her gaze from her pole, and stare at the man with large, curious eyes. It took a moment for the man to realize he was being carefully studied by the gnome. He let it continue for a moment, not quite sure what to think, but had to say something after her intent gaze began to creep him out.

"What?", he asked, finally looking down at the gnome's quizzical face.

"Your face," was Lilams reply, merely studying him harder.

"What about my face?" Panic settled at the edge of his voice.

"That." Lilam pointed at his head, but at nothing in particular.

"WHAT?! WHAT IS IT?!", the rogue exclaimed, losing his patience, afraid of what horrible thing the gnome was staring at on his face.

"Why are you wearing a napkin on your face?" Thoroughly confused, the man brought his hands to his face. His fingers brushed against his bandana. He sighed, partly in relief, and partly in annoyance.

"This isn't a napkin. Can't you tell I'm a rogue?"

Lilam tapped her forehead with her fishing pole, now looking at him with a befuddled expression.

"How can I tell you're a rogue when you're standing right in front of me? Rogues are invisible. And I'm pretty sure if I ever saw one, they wouldn't wear napkins on their faces." The man opened his mouth to educate the young gnome on rogues, but was cut off. "How do you eat like that? You're suppose to tie the napkin around your neck or leave it on your lap when you eat, like my mum tells me. Not tie it around your face. I'd hate to see what you do with your silverware..."

"I said this ain't a napkin," the rogue replied, wondering where the tram was, "It's called a bandana. Rogues wear them."

Lilam scratched her head. "Why?"

The man opened his mouth, then promptly shut it. Why did rogues where bandanas? He had never thought about it.

"Umm...", he stammered, trying to sound as if the answer was obvious, "We wear them because we don't want our faces to be seen. It's like extra stealth."

Lilam was not impressed by the answer. "Why don't you want your faces seen?"

"It's the same as a warrior wearing a helmet, okay?," the rogue said snappishly, growing tired of her babbling.

Lilam shook her head, unable to see the similarities. "I don't recall any famous warriors with napkins on their heads..."

"IT AIN'T A NAPKIN!"

Lilam merely shrugged at his outburst. "Okay, if you say so. You say bandana, I say napkin. We mean the same thing in the end." She moved her fishing pole to the man's face, attempting to lift his bandana up. "Are you part of the Defias? You should be careful. A lot of people might try to beat you up and take your face scarf." The rogue swatted the pole away before it could accidentally enter his nose.

"No, I'm not part of the Defias Brotherhood. I'm just a rogue! Is the tram late? Maybe I'll walk to Stormwind..."

Lilam again tapped her head lightly with her rod, saying, "For bad guys, you aren't very smart. Why wear red? And you all wear the same thing. It's not too hard to spot a Defias member. That's why everyone beats you up and takes your face scarves. Have you guys tried a different color? Maybe something a little less recognizable, like blue...or pink...how 'bout white?"

The rogue didn't answer. If he didn't reply, maybe she would just leave him alone...However, Lilam was not so easily deterred. "Did Van Cleef send you? I heard he's not a very nice person. Maybe his napkin is on too tight..."

"I'M NOT A DEFIAS MEMBER AND I DON'T KNOW VAN CLEEF, YOU MENACE!", the rogue shouted, unable to ignore her blatant ignorance. Lilam looked at him indignantly, a little miffed at his shouting.

"Well, excuse me! I woulda' figured you'd know your own brother, being in a _brotherhood _and all. How does your mum have time for anything else, with all those children?! She must have been as big as Ironforge when she was pregnant with you guys. Do you call your sisters 'brother', too?"

The man could take no more. He went and sat down on the bench farthest from the gnome, lest he be tempted to push her in front of the speeding tram as it came. Lilam was only standing by herself for a few moments before the tram finally arrived. She hopped on quickly, turning to watch the rogue. The man stood and began walking to the car all the way at the end, as far as possible from the gnome. Just as he was about to put his first foot on the tram, Lilam had one last thing to say.

She leaned against the side of the car, towards the man, shouting, "You know, for sneaky people, you rogues aren't that sneaky after all. Why do you make that _whirrr _sound when you try to make yourself invisible? Then we know you're around. Maybe you guys should wear two napkins for extra, _extra _stealth so we can't hear you try to sneak up on us..." That was the last straw.

With a garbled shout of anger mixed with unintelligible curses, he sprinted for the gnome, hands outstretched ready to throttle her by her neck. Lilam waved, thinking he was coming to give her a hug.

_What a nice Defias rogue... _The rogue was one step from having his hands around Lilam's tiny neck when he reached out and grabbed nothingness, falling hard onto the tram tracks with an outraged cry of rage as the tram sped away. Lilam was too deep in her own thoughts to hear. _Yup, I bet I can make it through the whole day without getting into trouble!_, she thought triumphantly, hugging herself on a job well done so far...


	4. A Betrayal Amongst Sisters

**Chapter Two: A Betrayal Amongst Sisters**

* * *

With a wave of the High Priestess's hand, the ceremony continued, leaving Tyrande in charge as Staghelm strode out of the Temple without a word. Ellisah was on his heels, flagging him down and shouting at his sinewy back.

"Archdruid Staghelm! Seeing as my parents have already taken their leave, let me be the first to apologize for Trisana's ignorance. I have tried telling my parents on more than one occasion that that girl had no place among us, but--"

Fandral silenced her apologetic babbling with by raising a hand as he turned to face her. His hawkish eyes bore into her chillingly, making the druidess shudder internally.

"As I mentioned before, it astounds me that no one bothered to tell that child that she cannot study the druidic arts. It makes me wonder just what sort of dribble all of you have been feeding her, not to mention how much of this dribble might compromise the confidentiality of our ways. I want you to find out exactly how much she knows and whether her knowledge is a potential threat or not," the Archruid commanded, leaving Ellisah with little to say in response except, "Yes, Archdruid," and chase after her parents.

_I warned that girl_!, Ellisah thought, fuming internally with an unrestrained rage, _Now the Archdruid is lumping me in with this...this travesty, and is under the impression that my parents or myself have divulged secrets of our craft to that human! Trisana will pay dearly. Only...how? Because of my parents and their foolishly naive beliefs, they will not stand idly by and allow me to harm Trisana, much less murder her in cold blood with my own hands... _

A nefarious smile broke across Ellisah's face like a dark, sinister fire. _No...not by my own hands..._ A plan of shady intentions began to form in the deep recesses of her mind, spreading acidic corruption as the plan formed, taking a life of its own. As if possessed, the druidess made a mad dash through the city, her destination being Cenarion Enclave.

As expected, the Enclave was deserted, the commotion of the ceremony drawing in passersby and requiring the combined efforts of the Sentinels to keep things civil and calm. There was a low hum of magic and a soft growl as Ellisah cast a spell upon herself, craftily transforming herself into a violet colored feline. Using the innate stealth abilities of her new body, the druidess crept amongst the shadows, surreptitiously entering Arch-Druid Staghelm's quarters.

It only took her a moment to retrieve what she had came for, stalking out of the room with a tan piece of parchment held delicately within her jowls. As soon as Ellisah could see the entrance of the city looming before her, she once again regained her elven form, tucking the scroll within the folds of her robe. Donning an expression of false concern, Ellisah raced toward the entrance, spotting her parents trying to console Trisana and attempt to coax her onto the two nightsaber mounts that shuffled about nearby.

Kysis heard his daughter's approach, briefly leaving Trisana to be comforted by his wife as he rose to intercept Ellisah, his face crestfallen and full of guilt. "Ellisah, you're here. We're trying to take Trisana home but...she will not speak to us. I cannot help but take the responsibility for all of this...we should have told her, but I did not think..."

Ellisah shook her head, interrupting him. "It is not your fault, so do not blame yourself. Right now Trisana needs your comfort, not your guilt." The sly druidess eyed the pack in her father's hand. It was Trisana's, as he had been holding it for her during the ceremony. "Here. Let me hold Trisana's bag while you lift her onto the mount. I'm sure once she's home, it will prove to dry her tears and illicit her into conversation."

Kysis placed a strong hand onto his daughter's shoulder, the creases in his face beginning to disappear as he gave her a small smile. "Yes, going home will be best for Trisana. I will go get her ready." The druid handed Ellisah the pack, turning from her to walk back to Trisana and Nahlia. While the two druids helped the weeping child onto Kysis' mount, Ellisah quickly ripped open the pack, stuffing the scroll into the bottom and burying it under the other contents inside.

The pack was shut just as Kysis came back, relieving his daughter of the bag. "We're off. Please relay our apologies to the Arch-Druid." And with that, he mounted the nightsaber in which Trisana was waiting, and rode off with Nahlia riding close behind. Ellisah watched them disappear along the horizon, staring out into the desolate road for a long time. She wanted to give them a head start.

It was all she could do to keep her face contorted with shock and concern as she burst into the Arch-Druid's quarters. This time he was there, looking up sharply at her unannounced entrance. Before he could get out his acerbic reprimand, Ellisah exclaimed, "Arch-Druid Staghelm! I...I don't know how to say this, but Trisana has stolen an important document concerning the Emerald Dream."

"It appears she snuck in here when she ran out of the Temple and took it out of spite. I saw her stash the parchment in her pack, but my parents would not listen to me. I believe that only your word will get through to them to see that she needs to be properly punished. Stealing from the Cenarion Circle is a serious matter which deserves more than a slap on the wrist. Even in her humiliated state this is unacceptable behavior."

Fandral's thick brows furrowed together at the news. "If what you have told me is true, then this cannot be overlooked. The Sentinels will apprehend her and she will be dealt with accordingly. The secrets of the Emerald Dream are just that. Secrets. An outsider is not permitted to obtain such knowledge. I will give the order to the Sentinels to pursue the thief. Go inform the rest of the Enclave of these developments."

The Arch-Druid swiftly exited the room, brushing by the druidess in a aggravated huff. Ellisah grinned in his wake. She was not done yet. It wasn't enough to sate her dark hunger for vengeance. She scaled downwards from the large tree structure, and slipped into a deeper, lesser visited underground division of the Enclave.

"What do you want, Druid?", a steely voice growled from the murky, dimly lit cave. Ellisah wasn't fazed, but searched the shadows with untrusting eyes, attempting to locate the speaker.

"The Arch-Druid sent me. He requests your skills and cooperation." There was a somewhat scoffing inflection in the jeer that followed. "And why, pray tell, should I give a damn about what that uptight, pompous prick 'requests'? He can shove his 'requests' into the deepest, darkest part of his nether regions for all I care."

The druidess was listening intently, finally locating the vicinity of the hidden speaker. "You will be compensated for your troubles. Or shall he shove that into his nether regions as well?" There was a short pause before a dark figure melded from the shadows, two glowing eyes full of unmasked avarice. "Since there are requests being made, I request that I be paid half up front," the man said, circling around her with an obvious suspicion.

Ellisah fished around within the pockets of her robes, drawing out a small, leather coin purse. The gold coins within tinkled melodically as the pouch sailed through the air and into the rogue's outstretched hands.

"There. That should suffice. Now, head to Dolanaar. In the last house closest to the woods, there is a human girl. She may have some elven features, but she is indeed human. The disgustingly short ears are a dead giveaway. She knows too much for her own good. The Arch-Druid wants her gone. We'll leave the method up to you. Retrieve the scroll and do with Trisana what you will. Return the scroll to the Cenarion Circle, never speaking of this again and you shall be rewarded. Agreed?"

The response was barely above a whisper, muffled by the rogue's bandana. "Agreed. Shall we seal the deal with blood?" There was a hint of humor in his voice. "The only blood I want to see is that human girl's staining your blades. I'd advise that you hurry before the Sentinels beat you to it." After a stern glare at the rogue, Ellisah left the caverns, leaving the man to his own devices.

"Now just what was that all about, Anishar?" A tall man dressed in hunting attire stepped out from the shadows, an imposing, burly boar peeking out from behind him. The rogue, Anishar Shadewhisper, turned to his companion, shaking the bag of gold in front of the hunter's face. "It seems that dame thought I was with these Cenarion Enclave rogues. Gave us an interesting job, she did. Find some piece of paper and kill some human."

Falerian Bloodwing smiled at him wickedly, with a knowing tap of his finger against his temples. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Anishar nodded, placing a good-natured hand on the hunter's shoulders, mindful of the boar snuffling the ground beside him. "If you're thinking of killing the girl and taking the scroll for ourselves, then yes. Selling the scroll back to those Cenarion Circle chumps will be worth a lot more than just bringing it back as 'Your Majesty' Staghelm wants. However, if you're thinking that I'm going to clean up that pile your porcine friend there just unloaded, then you're mistaken."

Falerian chuckled, running a hand through his aquamarine hair. "I was always a Malfurion man myself. Let's go with that first idea. I suppose a little killing and a ransom to top it off could be more providential than being on poop duty. Shall we get a move on? Seeing as how those Sentinel's aren't tame-able and I'm not looking for a catfight, it's best we get to Dolanaar before they do."

"No need to worry about our overzealous Sisters," the rogue replied, leading Falerian out of the cave. "We won't let the ladies leave empty-handed. That wouldn't be very gentlemanly like. Let's be sure to leave them a body or two to take back. And fighting with cats never was your forte. Seems pigs better fit your personality." The duo chortled in unison, mounting their waiting nightsabers and riding swift and hard, their wicked laughter distorted and lost to the rush of wind tearing at the depraved grins on their faces.

* * *

The ride back home seemed much longer than Trisana had ever remembered. Time felt as if it had slowed, just enough to make each heartbroken moment just that more excruciating. Even if she had heard the attempt at conversation from her parents over the storm of turmoil within her mind, the reply would have been little more than a strangled sob.

When they arrived at the house, Trisana was already buried so deep beneath the sorrow and humiliation that permeated through her soul, she only vaguely realized that she was being lifted from the mount and was set upon the ground. At that moment, her vision refocused, staring into the misty eyes of her father. He knelt on one knee before her, peering into her face pleadingly.

"Trisana...I'm sorry...", his voice, thick with overpowering emotions, trailed off as Trisana's lips moved, but the sound that followed was hardly more than a whisper. Kysis placed his hands on her shoulders, letting her know that he was there and listening. "Why?" For some reason, the girl's simple question tore into her father's heart, and produced a fresh stream of tears from Trisana's eyes.

"Why, father? Why can't I be a druid? I know I'm not...like you, mother and Ellisah. But I can train! I can _feel_ nature, Father, I know I can! What about all those lessons you taught me about nature, and the stories you used to tell about the first Druids? You told me to choose from the heart, and I did! So why does my heart keep sending tears to my eyes? Why did the Arch-Druid say those hurtful things? Why? I need to know why!"

Her lower lip began to tremble noticeably, ending her almost hysterical outburst. Nahlia stood nearby, watching, silent tears cascading down her own cheeks. Kysis was speechless. His daughter's word rang true, as he had given her many lessons concerning nature and balance, as well as telling her inspiring stories of the druids from the past. And now, watching his youngest daughter desperately fighting back the tears that poured from the broken capillaries of her heart, he could see his folly and cursed himself to an eternity in Darkness.

However, before he could open his mouth to try and express the guilt that burdened his heart and soul, a familiar voice cut through the air, interrupting him. "Kysis! Nahlia!" The voice came from an elf, adorned in gleaming plate armor, the sharp clanking of metal against metal filling the air as he rode up to the trio upon his fierce looking mount, leaping from his saddle with a loud clash and squeaking of heavy armor.

Kysis rose, letting his hands linger on Trisana's shoulders. "Lanrith, old friend, what is wrong? I thought you were attending the ceremony. Is it over so soon?", the druid asked, eyeing the man with befuddlement at his rapid and anxious approach. The warrior didn't reply at first, hastily glancing back behind him as if he were being followed.

"Kysis, listen, we must act quickly! There are mounted Sentinels headed for our village, and they are coming to this very spot! They want Trisana." Lanrith's eyes darted to the girl, who stood, motionless, her face frozen in a mixture of shock and fright. Kysis was in the man's face and shaking the warrior's shoulders in a flash, growling in a deep whisper, "What?! Why?! What has she done? Why do they want Trisana?!"

The armored man shook his head briefly, pulling from the panicking man's grip. "I do not know, all I do know is that they are coming for her and will take her away. I happened to pass by the Arch-Druid as he gave the order. It doesn't sound good, Kysis. You must think and act quickly. If I can help in anyway, I will."

The druid tried to piece together rational thoughts from within his muddled and frantic mind, his eyes meeting those of his wife. As their gaze locked, lingering for what seemed like an eternity, Kysis and his wife knew what had to be done. Nahlia wiped at the tears from her face, catching Trisana's pack which Kysis tossed over to her with one solid, determined nod.

He then turned back to Lanrith, grasping Trisana's hand as he said, quickly, "I cannot thank you enough for what you have already done for us, Lanrith. But I need to ask one more thing of you. Please, take Trisana to the boat that docks at Darkshore. There is someone in Feralas that can take care of her until the Arch-Druid's wrath has passed and is forgotten."

"I will guard her with my life. Now hurry and get her ready, the Sentinel's were almost on my heels on my way here. Make haste!" The warrior mounted his feline steed as Kysis ran for the house, half-dragging, half-pulling a trembling Trisana behind him. They tore into the house, Kysis leading his daughter up the flight of stairs and into his and Nahlia's bedroom.

Once there, the druid wretched open the wardrobe against the wall, still clasping onto Trisana's hand as if he would never let go. Reaching in, he retrieved an object from the far corner, lifting it out of the wardrobe and briefly releasing Trisana's hand to present it to her.

"This is my father's staff. I have long since hid this away so that I could one day pass it along to my own children. Ellisah would not take it, preferring to wield daggers over staves. So I want you to take it, and make this your own. My father was a powerful druid and just as his spirit watches over me, with this staff, he shall watch over you as well. I still have faith in your heart, Trisana, although you may not. The Arch-Druid may be wise, but even he cannot tell you what lies in your heart. I meant those words I said to you. Let your heart guide your way and may the light of Elune illuminate your path."

Trisana could not force any sound from her restricting throat, so with shaking hands she took the staff from her father instead, blinking down at it as she tried to squeeze air into her tightening lungs. The staff was carved from a rich, mahogany colored wood, sanded down to a smooth, glistening finish. The weapon was warm and inviting to the touch, humming with a latent energy as if it had a life of its own.

A heavy, iridescent orb of deep emerald was fashioned into the claw-like tip, clutching the orb into place as the radiant greens within the sphere swirled and spun in a mesmerizing dance. Trisana's gaze was torn from the staff as her father began pulling her once again, down the stairs and out the front door. Nahlia was waiting by Lanrith's mount, opening her arms wide for Trisana.

The mother and daughter embraced tightly, an anguished sob escaping Nahlia's tightly pursed lips despite her attempts to muffle it. "Trisana, my sweet, little Trisana...", was all the druidess could mutter as she buried her face into the child's hair. Trisana wanted to comfort her, but again, she could not find her voice nor did any words seem to express what she wanted to say. So she hugged her mother tighter until she couldn't breath, the sound of her own heart pounding in ears overpowering her mother's weeping.

Without warning, she was torn from her mother's arms and lifted onto the mount, placed behind Lanrith who handed her the pack and a long, hooded cloak. Silently, Trisana slipped both on, looking back down at her parents from within the large hood that covered most of her face. Their expressions burned themselves into her mind, although she knew her own face was probably a mirror of theirs. Suddenly, the reins were snapped and the nightsaber took off into a full canter, Trisana gripping onto Lanrith's midsection for dear life.

"Go to Feralas, Trisana! Find the one called Lariel!" Unable to take a last look back, these were the last words she heard her father say before the sound of rushing wind filled her ears. She welcomed the noise as it masked her loud, frightened sobs, fiercely holding tight to both Lanrith and the staff within her hand, her father's last words to her echoing over and over in her mind. _...Find the one called Lariel..._

* * *

Anishar paused to wipe his daggers off, staining the once green blades of grass crimson. The boar by Falerian's side sniffed the reddened spot curiously, then lifted its large head and snorted loudly.

"Well they weren't very helpful. I thought druids were supposed to be peace-loving and all non-violent like. That old wench nearly took my whole jaw off with that paw swipe of hers. I told you cats and I don't get along very well. Too bad I had to put her down, but then again, Petunia is the jealous type and wouldn't have let me keep her any way," the hunter said, shouldering his rifle onto his back.

The rogue stood, replacing his blades in their sheaths as the pair began to walk towards their mounts. "Nah, druids are pretty tough. You wouldn't think a man could fight so well wearing a dress, but that don't matter anymore. The lovely couple are pushing up peacebloom now. See, we even, did our share for good ol' Earthmother. I hear druids make the best fertilizer...wait, who's Petunia?"

Falerian grinned, jerking his head towards the pet by his feet. One of Anishar's eyebrows rose to a confused height. "You named your boar Petunia?"

The hunter nodded, reached down to pat the boar's leathery, thick head. "Yup, why? Is something wrong with the name Petunia?"

"That has to be the most idiotic name you could have chosen for a boar. Why not something fiercer, like Stonetusk, or Hogger? Why didn't you just name her Princess and buy her a tiara?"

"Hogger...sounds familiar. Wasn't he that famous guy who everyone talks about? Last name of Jenkins or something? And in any case, Petunia was my mother's name."

"No it wasn't. I grew up next door to you and said hi to your mother everyday, you dolt."

Falerian chuckled, stopping to untie his mount from the branch of a tree as Anishar did the same. "Well if it was her name, wouldn't you have felt bad for calling it idiotic?"

The rogue sighed, shaking his head at his companion. "Keep on and the boar's name is going to be Dinner when I stick her on a spit and roast her with an apple lodged in her mouth and more than likely, you'll have an apple in yours too so you don't let any more stupid names slip out of that big mouth of yours. 'Petunia' can at _least_ track the girl down, right?"

"Sure, just look at her now. She's already got the scent!", the hunter stated confidently, gesturing to the boar.

"She's eating the grass."

The hunter took a closer look at his pet, and sure enough, the animal was consuming tufts of green grass. "I suppose I might want to feed her sometime soon. Geez, what a pig. In any case, _I_ can track the girl. I am a skilled master at my profession, you know. _And_ I don't eat grass. Petunia must have learned it from you."

Anishar snorted rudely, hauling himself up onto his mount. "Skilled master, huh? This coming from a guy who named his boar, 'Petunia'..."

Climbing onto his own mount, Falerian pulled up beside the rogue, grinning goofily into his face. "Sounds like betting words to me. Both Petunia and I will show _you_ what's what. And if we find this Trisana girl, you have to rub Petunia's tired hooves and polish her tusks. Deal?"

Under his bandana, Anishar smiled back, tightening his grip on the reins as he heard the sound of a large group of mounts coming up the road. "Deal. And if I find her, you have to change Petunia's name to Anisharisgreat. Now let's go. And bring your vegetarian pig with you." With a sharp snap of the reins, both men were off, slipping past the squadron of Sentinel's that had just arrived, not prepared for the horrific scene that awaited them inside the house.

* * *

Trisana barely had time to drudge up painful memories from earlier as the pair swept through Darnassus, the city nothing more than a blur. She was blinded by a bright, red light, then, the sound of crashing waves bombarded her as the light dissipated. Peering around Lanrith's broad frame, she could see the ship pulling in as they approached.

Her ears were once again bombarded, only this time, it was a different sound, one that sent icy chills along her spine and caused her heart to miss a beat. Angry shouts pealing through the air, yelling for someone to stop. Trisana twisted in the saddle to look behind her. Immediately she realized it was a mistake to do so, and regretted it. Sentinel's seemed to pour from the portal connecting to Darnassus, all headed for Lanrith and Trisana with weapons visible and waving in the air.

The warrior had turned to look too, and only spurred his mount faster until they finally reached the docks. With a flying leap, he dismounted, turning quickly to help Trisana down. Reaching into his breastplate, the man produced a rolled up piece of parchment and shoved it into the girl's hands.

"This is a map. It will help you find your way to Feralas, as I know you have never ventured past Darnassus. Use this and make your way there and stay hidden. Your parents or myself will try to get word to you there soon. Do not dally in Auberdine, for the Sentinels will be on your heels. Keep your hood on and hide your face at all times. This is all I can do for you, child. May Elune protect you and keep you from harm. Now go!"

Lanrith spun from the girl, drawing a shimmering, two-handed broadsword from its sheath. Trisana hesitated, frightened and unsure, but all in all, she did not want Lanrith to get hurt because of her. She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but was cut off. Seeing that Trisana was still standing there, the warrior turned back around and roughly shoved the open-mouthed girl onto the boat just as it began to move away from the docks.

Caught by surprise, Trisana stumbled backwards and fell hard, landing on her backside. She quickly picked herself up, rushing to the railing of the departing ship. The Sentinels had surrounded Lanrith, yelling for him to stand down and let them pass. The warrior did not budge, merely readjusting his grip on his sword.

Although Trisana could not tear her gaze from the courageous man, her hands flew up to cover her mouth and muffle her horrified screams as Lanrith, the man she barely knew and who had risked himself to help her, was swarmed by the woman warriors, and lost among a sea of falling blades.

* * *

Coming Soon – _Chapter 3: A Journey For Two_

_With the Sentinels and the rogue and hunter duo, Anishar and Falerian, hot on her trail, Trisana sets off on her journey to Feralas to find Lariel, a friend of her father's. But for the naive and frightened Trisana, the journey will not be easy. Luckily, a quirky, young gnome is willing to help Trisana. However, "help" might not be the right word for it..._


	5. Lilam Learns A New Move

**WaFfLe TiMe WiTh LiLaM PrEsEnTs**: _Lilam Learns A New Move_

* * *

"Look sharp, warrior Lilam Firesparks, for today I shall teach you a new move. It is called, Mocking Blow." The instructor peered down at the tiny warrior with a wide grin, unable to take the young gnome seriously. Gnomes were not known to be great warriors, nor great fighters. The fall of Gnomeregan proved this. He would humor Lilam, and do his best not to laugh at her attempts.

"Is this sharp enough? I can look sharper if I need to!" Lilam brought her hands up to a triangular point above her head, looking up at the instructor with an eager smile.

"That's...er, fine. Now, Mocking Blow is a fairly easy technique. The object is to force me into attacking you. This move may one day save the life of a friend. Okay, now I'm going to turn around and spar with this student here. Try your best to grab my attention."

He then turned from the gnome, bowing cordially to the student in front of him and beginning a light sparring match. Lilam stared at the man's back for a moment, scratching her head in deep thought. Finally, inspiration struck her and she crept forward towards the instructor.

The sparring match was interrupted by loud, wind-like noises. The trainer turned, glancing down at Lilam whose cheeks were puffed out and rounded, full of air.

"What are you doing?"

The air held captive within the gnome's cheeks escaped with a high whistle. "I'm blowing on you, silly screw! Are you sure you're a warrior trainer?"

"...Not that kind of blow! Grab my attention by _hitting_ me!" The man shook his head, returning to his match with a curt nod of his head.

Lilam began to ponder again, this time even harder. Her eyes suddenly brightened as she bobbed her head up and down at her own genius. She had it now, it was all so clear.

There was a low ringing as something soft bounced off the instructor's armored back. Gritting his teeth, the man turned, facing the gnome once more. Her shoe was off, tossed to the side, and her bare foot was missing a sock.

"What are you doing now?!"

Lilam grinned proudly, wriggling her exposed toes. "I hit you. With a sock. You know, these socks are black now, but they were white when Mum bought them."

"You're supposed to hit me with your sword, Lilam, your sword! Why would you hit me with a sock?!"

"I was trying to sock you. Maybe I should have sucker punched you. I think I've got a lollipop in my bag somewhere..."

"Listen, Lilam and listen carefully. Use your sword to grab my attention and stop me from fighting. It's that simple!"

"Okay! I'll get it this time!"

With a weary sigh, the man turned once again, resuming his match. This time, Lilam thought really, really hard, shutting her eyes tight as she focused on the trainer's words. ...Grab my attention... With a small laugh, Lilam lightly bonked herself on the forehead. It was that simple! How could she have missed it? She drew her sword from its sheath. She was ready.

A sharp, pain-filled grunt of agony pealed through the air as the trainer crumpled to the ground, his trembling hands cradling a soft, tender region that all males possess.

"What did you do?" the man moaned, twitching on the ground.

Lilam was grinning triumphantly, taking the pain on the man's face as passionate approval. "I hit you in your attention spot with the flat part of my sword. Everyone knows that's what you aim for if you want to grab someone's attention! I wasn't supposed to _grab_ your attention was I? Because that's not the same as hitting. However, you did say grab..."

**"NO! NO GRABBING!" **

"Okay, no need to yell. It's rude. Is it time to learn the mocking part now? I can do this part no problem! Your feet are moldy and your toes smell like old cheese! But most importantly...can you smell what the Lilam is cooking? Because it smells like you. Like bear breath and burnt cookies. Mama said mock you out, so I'm gonna' mock you out...punk."

"..."

"Okay, practice time!" Lilam exclaimed, raising her sword sideways into the air.

The trainer only had one last thought before curling up into a fetal position and letting his mind drift into a happy place. _At least I didn't teach her Mortal Strike..._


	6. A Journey For Two

**Chapter Three: A Journey For Two**

* * *

Trisana watched as Rut'Theran Village faded from sight, leaving her feeling very cold and alone. She had never been on a boat before, and the oscillating waves began to make her stomach quiver uneasily as her breakfast tried to force its way back up. The girl fought back, conquering her nausea as she wiped at her damp cheeks, sniffling pitifully.

"Now what be all dis weepin' a'bowt?" Trisana jumped in surprise, not noticing the bearded dwarf that had came to stand next to her. Apparently he had been in the lower deck during her and Lanrith's daring race for the boat. The girl sniffed again, biting down on her lower lip to keep it from trembling. Waiting patiently for her answer, the kindly dwarf fished into his pockets, producing a clean, grey handkerchief and presenting it to her.

Trisana took it gratefully without hesitation, dabbing the delicate piece of cloth at the corner of her eyes. "There ya' are lass, d'un ya' be feelin' bettah now?" The girl nodded, staring down at the handkerchief in her hand. "It's...it's all my fault..." Trisana clutched the handkerchief close to her, willing herself not to burst into fresh tears.

The ruddy faced dwarf tugged at his salt and pepper beard absentmindedly. "D'un ya' know that pritty liddle cryin' elves make tha' sky sad?" He gestured to the sky overhead, Trisana following his gaze. Indeed the sky was beginning to fill with black, ominous clouds. "'ow a'bowt a smile then, lass?", the dwarf requested, patting her hand. The girl forced a small smile to her lips, and in that moment, the sun managed to peek from behind the suppressive clouds, drenching the boat in a silky, golden veil briefly before disappearing just as quickly.

The dwarf smiled wider with a soft chuckle rippling through his stocky frame. "Ay, now that's what I be callin' a smile! A smile full 'o sunshine that was! Ol' Hammerfist knows a smilin' champion when 'e see one!" The murky, fog filled coast of Darkshore suddenly broke across the horizon, approaching swiftly and steadily. Trisana was mesmerized for a moment, but quickly remembering Lanrith's words, turned her gaze back to the dwarf. "I have to go." She held out the handkerchief, attempting to hand it to him. The dwarf merely shook his head, pushing the cloth back into her hands.

"Why d'un ya' keep it, lass. If ya' look down neah tha' bottom, you'll see mah name. Me bonny wife made it fer me, bu' I nevah use tha' thing. It might com in 'andy one day." Trisana blinked twice at the man, then nodded, stuffing it into the pocket of her gown. Just then, the boat pulled into port, slowing to a gentle stop at the docks.

"Thank you," Trisana said with a small smile, waving to the dwarf as she sprinted off the boat and down the docks. The man waved back, letting his hand fall to stroke his beard thoughtfully as he watched her swift departure.

The girl pulled her hood down lower over her face, being sure not to make eye contact with the Sentinel's that stalked the docks with heavy, measured steps. The small town of Auberdine was quaint in a quiet and peaceful sort of way, reminding Trisana vaguely of her own village. But she had little time to stand in wide-eyed awe, heading for the wooded area so that she would not be easily spotted.

She used her staff as a walking stick, traveling deep into the woods until she found a relatively sunny spot with not a soul in sight. Glancing about once more to make certain she was alone, Trisana plopped herself onto the ground, retrieving the map that she had stashed into her pack. She studied it carefully, using a finger to trace the quickest path to Feralas.

On the map, the journey seemed so short, but in her mind, she knew it would be a long time before she was even close to reaching her destination. She sighed wearily at the thought, bowing her head to let her hair cascade around her and escape the confinement of the hood. A large shadow suddenly appeared across her map, startling her. Wisely, she chose not to look up at first, trying to keep her face hidden at all costs.

"Uh, excuse me, but you could please step to the side? You're blocking my light." Heavy, ragged breathing was her reply, Trisana apprehensively lifted her gaze from the map and up into the face of the owner of the shadow. Hot, rancid breath was blasted into her face, causing her to choke and gag in disgust. A low, menacing growl from the bear in front of her followed suit. Even in the terrified paralysis of her mind, she could not believe what she was seeing.

She had barely escaped from the Sentinels and just managed to make it to Darkshore...only to be mauled and eaten by a hungry bear. It might have been humorous to her had it not been so horribly sad. Her lungs began to expand, drawing in the needed amount of breath for the blood-curdling scream she was preparing to unleash. In the very least, she wanted her body found and brought back to her parents.

The bear raised his paw, preparing to strike her with a crushing blow to head. The scream working its way from Trisana's lungs was abruptly caught in her throat as, out of no where, something lashed out across the bear's face, causing it to roar in outrage, shaking it's furry head and taking a few steps back. The girl's mouth hung agape as she took a closer look at the weapon that had just saved her life.

It was a fishing pole. And what was even more surprising was the person holding the pole. A small, green-eyed gnome peered into her hood for a moment before turning to face the enraged bear once more. The little female had a head full of strawberry-auburn hair that just reached her shoulders, a shield strapped to her back and a sword sheathed at her side. Trisana didn't know which was more worthy of her wide eyed gaze, the bear or the gnome wielding the fishing pole.

"Ha, you thought you could snack on people on my watch, sneaky bear? Now don't go trying to use your bear magic on me! I came prepared!" With this declaration, the gnome reached into her pockets...and produced a spoon and a fork. Trisana boggled at the young gnome, her mind beginning to fill with dread once more. _Is this gnome going to fight...or eat supper?!_, was Trisana's frantic yet bewildered thought, gaping even harder at the tiny woman.

The gnome set down the fishing pole, stabbing the fork into the ground behind her with prongs facing upward. Then, grinning crazily, the gnome turned back to the bear, spoon held poised and ready for the inevitable attack that was to follow and saying jeeringly under her breath, "En guard."

* * *

With a fearsome, earsplitting roar that could turn even the most intrepid warrior into a simpering, mewling infant, the bear charged forward, lumbering towards the ridiculously calm and composed gnome. Trisana's grip on her staff tightened until her knuckles faded white. The gnome was clearly deranged, her brain possibly addled by the toxic radiation from the fallen gnome city, as she had heard stories about.

The girl was positive the small warrior would be tossed about like a rag doll, and that she would be the next victim to the animal's mindless butchery. And least now, with staff in hand, she could muster some amount of dignity to die with. And while Trisana mentally began preparing for a gruesome death, the gnome suddenly lifted the metal spoon high into the air, as if anticipating striking out with the pitiful, makeshift weapon.

With the next series of events, Trisana began to lose feeling in her jaw muscles as her mouth continued to hang open, fearing that it might not ever be able to shut or work properly again. A blinding ray of sunlight reflected from the spoon as the gnome raised it into the air, beaming directly into the crazed eyes of the furious beast.

Blinded, the bear careened headfirst into the spoon-wielding gnome, slamming into her and knocking her to the side. Off balance and unable to see, the large animal stutter stepped, tripping over it's own paws and landing heavily to the ground with a pain-filled grunt. Trisana blinked at the scene, her eyes darting between the two motionless bodies lying like fallen statues upon the ground.

Hesitantly, with a wary eye on the bear, the girl finally was able to muster the strength and courage to move, creeping towards the fallen warrior. As she got close, peering down at the still, diminutive figure, a squeal of surprise sprung from her lips as the gnome suddenly shot her hand into the air, miraculously still clasping the spoon.

"I'm okay! That was all part of the plan. See, if you play dead, the bears want to play too...and that's when you get 'em!"

The gnome sprang up, rushing over to the bear without apprehension or second-thought. Trisana held out her hand, opening her mouth to protest, but the gnome was already talking once again. "He is slain, just as I had planned in my ingenuitous...ingenerous...ingen...my smarty stragdety!," the gnome exclaimed, poking at the massive, furry beast with the tip of her shoe.

Trisana was confused. _How did the bear die? She didn't even lay a hand...nor spoon upon it..._ Her confusion was cleared as the gnome suddenly heaved herself against the corpse, rolling the body onto its side. The end of a silver handled fork was protruding from the chest, lodged deep within the creature's silenced heart. The gnome nodded at the sight as if it had been expecting that turn of event.

"Yup, just as I thought. Bears are deathly allergic to silver. That explains why they don't wear jewelry. That was one of my best bear slaying forks too..."

The warrior plopped herself onto the ground, removing her backpack and opening it with a satisfied grin. "Good thing Mum packed me extras!"

Intrigued, and overall grateful, Trisana crouched down next to the gnome, unable to keep silent any longer. "Why...exactly...did you decide to fight a bear with a spoon?" The gnome boggled at her as if she had sprouted three heads.

"It's not just a _spoon_, silly moony elf lady. It's a _magicy_ spoon. You see, you need a magicy spoon to fight bear magic. They're sneaky ones, they are! You have to stay on your toes or those sneaky snake bears will nibble 'em right off when they think you're not looking! And the fork is made of silver. Bears are allergic to silver, as you can see. Draws 'em in like a magnet!"

As the gnome stuffed the spoon into her pack, Trisana noticed a butter knife. Unable to resist her curiosity, Trisana inquired, "What's that?" She indicated to the knife.

It was the gnome's turn to look at Trisana crazily, responding in disbelief, "What do you mean? It's a butter knife! I use it to knife my butter and put it on toast. Then, I dip the toast in milk, but only when Mum's not looking, because she doesn't like when I do that."

The gnome shook her head at the girl's ignorance, closing the pack and rising to her feet. "Oh...I knew that! I was just...but the spoon and the fork...umm, so what is your name?" Trisana couldn't discern if she was more confused or curious. The bright-eyed gnome straightened herself, flashing deep, gnomish dimples as she smiled broadly.

"My name is Lilam Firesparks! I'm going to be a famous warrior one day and everyone will know my name! So what's your name and why are you wearing that hood cape on your head? Are you a sneaky, under covers spy?"

Trisana could not help but smile back at Lilam. "My name is Trisana. And no, I'm not a spy. I'm...sort of hiding." Lilam's face turned quizzical, cocking her head to the side.

"Hiding? Like that seek and hide game? Well, you're going to need a better disguise then that. Pretend to be a tree!" The gnome demonstrated, standing perfectly still in a straight-armed pose.

"No, not a game," Trisana said quietly, her former melancholic frame of mind rushing back as a bracing, chilly torrent. "They want to take me away and punish me for some reason I don't know. Now I have to travel to Feralas and hope that I arrive there safely..."

Lilam's hand shot into the air, interrupting Trisana. "And I will help! This is why warriors are warriors! We are supposed to help good people and protect them from bad people. Even though I'm not famous yet, I'm very good at warrioring! So can I go, can I go, can I gooooo?!"

Trisana was incredulous, stammering in apparent shock and inflating hope. "You…you would help me without even knowing who I am or why I'm hiding?"

Lilam's head bobbed up and down twice. "Of course! Us warriors can tell who the good people are. It's like a seventh sense or something and takes much training to learn, but I always know. So let's go!" The gnome took a few marching steps forward, then abruptly stopped, scratching the back of her head. "Uhh...where is this Feralas place?"

Trisana hid a smile, turning to pick her map from the ground and point at the destination to show Lilam. "It's here. And thank you for saving me from that bear. I owe you my life."

The gnome peered at the map, scrutinizing it for a moment before looking back up at Trisana. "You're very, very welcome. You don't owe me anything, for I am a warrior and saving people from those sneaky bears is what we do. And I'm going to call you Trissy! I like that better than Trisana."

The girl fell in step alongside the fast-talking gnome, testing out the nickname with a low whisper, "Trissy..." She then smiled down at Lilam, feeling more at ease and less depressed the longer she was in the gnome's presence. "It's not the nickname I would have chosen, but it'll do. You are a very strange and brave person, Lilam."

Lilam nodded in agreement, adding, "And don't forget bear-slayer. That's most important." Unexpectedly, the young warrior drew her sword, pointing it at the path ahead of them as she struck a pose which she deemed as heroic. "Now, on to Fairylas!"

"...It's Feralas."

There was a pause and a drooping of Lilam's sword. "Right, isn't that what I said?"

Trisana giggled, unsure of where the it came from, but enjoying the sensation nonetheless. "Lilam, I have a feeling that you're nothing but trouble."

Lilam smirked, beginning to head for Ashenvale at a leisurely, upbeat pace. "Trouble is my middle name! Well, I don't have a middle name...but if I did, then it'd be trouble! But I'll do my best to steer us clear of trouble, I promise!" The gnome crossed her heart to add conviction to her statement. Trisana merely smiled wider and shook her head. _Now why do I find that hard to believe..._

* * *

Staghelm's trembling fist slammed onto the desk heavily as he shot up from his seat, sending papers floating in a light dance and eliciting a collective shudder from the cringing Sentinels. "Care to explain just how all of you failed to retrieve one feeble, adolescent thief which really should have required only one Sentinel in the first place? This is a mockery; an illogical farce in which I find myself not amused in the slightest. Explain yourselves and be quick about it!"

The Arch-Druid's flashing eyes cut into each of them deeply, adding flecks of salt into the lacerations that his caustic words had already created. Stealing a secret glance at her sisters, one Sentinel stepped forward, clearing her throat to mask the nervousness in her voice.

"When we arrived at the girl's home, she was already gone. Apparently a warrior by the name of Lanrith Stoneblade, warned the family and then decided to help her escape and thwart our efforts to retrieve her. We were unable to catch up, although our sisters in the city spotted them running thru and attempted to stop them, but alas, the girl was pushed onto the boat as it was departing and managed to get away."

However, we were able to subdue and capture her accomplice, Lanrith, who is now within our custody. We have already sent word to our sisters in Darkshore to be on the look out for the girl and to spread word as far and fast as they can. Soon, she will have no where to run and we will track her down and bring her back. We shall not disappoint you again."

Fandral merely nodded curtly, resettling in his seat. "Let us hope so. I want that document back before she takes it upon herself to share the information it contains with the world. What of her parents? Are they in custody as well?" There was a brief, uncomfortable pause before the woman spoke up again.

"The child's parents..." Her voice trailed off into nothingness as a hunched, shuffling figure entered the room unannounced. "I will continue from here," Ellisah stated with a husky voice, tear stains clearly present on her pale cheeks. She managed to straighten herself under the Arch-Druid's penetrating gaze, drawing in a shaky breath before she began.

"From what I have gathered, right before the Sentinels arrived at my parent's house a rogue and an accomplice were seen fleeing the area after...after trying to get information from them...and receiving nothing. The pair overheard about the scroll and Trisana and are undoubtedly after both. And my parents...merely got in the way."

"They...they weren't prepared for a fight, they weren't expecting one. It was just suppose to be the Sentinels coming to take Trisana away. How were they supposed to know? Why didn't they just tell them where Trisana was going? Why--"

Staghelm stopped her traumatized, slightly disbelieving rambling with the clearing of his throat. "This is an unexpected and tragic turn of events. Moonpride is a name that I am quite familiar with and have great respect for. However, the task at hand still remains. Trisana must be found and retrieved. We shall mourn our loss when this situation has been resolved and put behind us."

Ellisah's lower lip quivered, but she nodded, struggling to maintain composure and an air of decorum that being in the Arch-Druid's presence mandated.

"Please, Arch-Druid, I beg of you, let me lead the search for Trisana. In lieu of my parents absence, I take full responsibility for this whole thing and will do everything within my powers to rectify it. With Cenarius as my witness, I vow that I will bring back the stolen document and ensure that Trisana receives a fitting punishment for her transgressions against Cenarion Circle."

Her words seeped out of her mouth darkly, filling the air with a poisonous promise. Staghelm's piercing eyes roamed her face for a long moment, watching the flames of passion burn fervently in her eyes. Finally, he gave the slightest of nods, replying coolly "Fine, I leave the situation in your hands as of now. However, I am inclined to be somewhat curious as to why you would readily undertake this assignment knowing that it is one of your kin that you are pursuing."

Ellisah's face darkened, her eyes flaring brilliantly in new, intense flames of hatred and abhorrence. "She is no kin of mine" she spat viciously, the word 'kin' barely able to be forced past her lips. Without another word, she left after a shallow bow to Fandral, her hands trailing to her side to find the leather hilt of her dagger, grasping it distractedly with a white knuckled grip. It was time to pay a visit to Lanrith.

* * *

Lanrith moaned hoarsely, awaking into a pain-filled consciousness as his blurry eyes squinted at his unfamiliar surroundings. The bruised and bloodied man slowly sat himself up, wincing briefly at the raw chaffing of the rope bonds tied tightly around his wrists, ankles and broad torso. His eyes fell despondently upon his armor in the corner of the stark, dimly lit room, filled with dents and gaping, black holes.

He had fought valiantly, despite his refusal to not severely injure any of the Sentinels. Lanrith understood all to well that they were only carrying out orders, doing their job and their duty. He could not blame them, nor bring himself to do them any serious bodily harm. Instead, he had held them at bay to the best of his abilities, but had received a severe response for his pacifist display. He did not regret his decision.

The warrior stretched his sore and battered limbs the best he could in his restrained state, his tongue flicking briefly over the cut on his lower lip. His ribs ached, the restrictive embrace of his bonds only making the feeling that much more intense. Blood trickled down the side of his face in swirling rivers, making his face itch as the crimson liquid dried and hardened.

Lanrith could feel the tender skin around his left eye and cheek beginning to swell and inflate, the telltale signs of an approaching black eye. His mental inspection of his injuries was interrupted as the door to his prison room suddenly burst open. Two grim-faced Sentinels ushered into the room, stepping to the side to allow Ellisah by. "Thank you, I will speak with him alone now," the druidess said softly as she passed by them.

The two women bowed stiffly, then exited, shutting the door with a resounding clang. Lanrith could not hide his surprise nor relief, managing a weak smile as Ellisah came to crouch before him. "Ellisah, it has been many seasons since the last time we have spoken. In any case, I am glad you are here. I need to know...did Trisana make it safely to Darkshore? What about your parents? Are they being detained somewhere around here as well? Where are they?"

Ellisah allowed the man's questions to linger in the air a moment, her face withered and solemn. Lanrith knew the answer to his last inquiries without a reply from Ellisah. He had seen enough loss in his day to know the look, a look he himself had worn many times before.

"My parents...they are no longer with us. Two murderers after Trisana and the parchment she has stolen are to blame." She paused so that her words would sink in to the desired affect, continuing as she saw his jaw stiffen and face clench in a faint display of sorrow and grief.

"That is why I'm here, Lanrith. I need to find Trisana and bring her back. I know that you and my parents thought it was best at the time to try and protect her, but see what has happened because of it? My parents would want to see Trisana safe and unharmed, but the only way to ensure that is if she is retrieved and fesses up to her crime. Where is she, Lanrith? Where is she headed? We must find her before things get out of hand."

Having planted the seed of deceit, Ellisah waited patiently for the plan to take effect, holding the grizzled warrior's gaze while she awaited his answer. Lanrith was stricken silent by the druidess' eyes, held prisoner by the frigid waves of murderous intent brimming within. And in that moment, the seasoned fighter knew of Ellisah's dark intentions, the knowledge filling his heart with anger and dread.

"Are quite certain that you require this information just so you can bring Trisana back...or for other reasons you might not be willing to share?" the man asked in a slow, deliberate tone, letting her know he was well aware of her hidden agenda. Immediately, Ellisah's face changed, her features tightening and eyes flashing dangerously.

"Perhaps you are unaware of this, but you are in no position to be asking of my intentions. Let me remind you that you are an accomplice to a criminal who has transgressed against Cenarion Circle, no less. Seeing as how my name holds some amount of authority here, if I was inclined to do so, I could, perhaps, see to it that your punishment is little more than a slap on the wrist. Now tell me, where is Trisana going?"

The woman slid her dagger from its sheath, letting it rest on her knee in plain view of Lanrith. The old warrior chuckled deeply, shaking his shaggy head at her ignorance. "Dear child, I am warrior. Always have been, and will one day die as such. I walk alongside death and make the battlefield my home. Do you really think that your little threats actually frighten me? I have seen farm chickens scarier than you."

Ellisah's face flushed purple as the blood rushed to her cheeks in an enraged torrent. The blade of the dagger tickled the man's throat as the druidess leaned close, breathing hot breath into his face as she hissed, "I advise you tell me where she's headed, Lanrith. May I also remind you that I hold you partially responsible for what happened to my parents. If the two who came for Trisana had gotten what they had traveled there for instead of you meddling and whisking her off, they would still be here. I have serious doubts that a farm chicken would stab you in the throat."

The man did not reply, staring her down with an unswervingly calm, indifferent gaze that infuriated Ellisah even more. It was plain to see that she would get nothing from Lanrith, no matter what she threatened to do or actually did to him. "No matter," Ellisah said with a sinister grin, rising to her feet.

"Trisana has never ventured past Darnassus in her life. Her trail will be blatantly obvious and exceedingly simple to follow. Knowing her destination only would have made the inevitable that much easier to obtain. She will be caught, and, now that my parents are no longer here, I can't exactly say what I'll do when I find her. Too bad your efforts were all in vain, Lanrith. Enjoy that thought as you sit here, rotting in the darkness."

Leaning down, she had one last thing to say, which she whispered nefariously into his ear. "Oh, and since you appear to be so very hard of hearing in your old age, not answering my questions and all, allow me to fix your appearance so that you're more suited for the role." She brought the dagger down mercilessly, slicing off the man's left ear.

The amputated appendage fell to the ground with a soft plop, as Lanrith's eye bulged in both agony and surprise. Ellisah kicked him viciously in the head, causing him to crumple onto his side with a pain-filled grunt, blood beginning to form a dark pool on the bare floors. The druidess was out the door a moment later, pausing only momentarily to speak to the Sentinels guarding the door.

"Lanrith is still a bit uncooperative, but that is to be expected. He might be coerced to speak later, but for right now, he has requested that he be allowed to sleep off his injuries and pain for the time being. Let him rest and regain his strength. I wouldn't disturb him for at least a day." The Sentinels nodded, bowing their heads at Ellisah's request, so they did not see the depraved, demented expression that she quickly hid from view.

* * *

"Are you _sure_ she came through here?" Falerian chuckled at the question, shaking his head at the rogue's ignorance. "Positive. The girl went into the cover of the woods, as was to be expected seeing as she wouldn't want to be caught in plain sight along the road. See how the blades of grass are bent over and padded down every so slightly?"

He indicated to a small patch of crushed grass. "Made by light, unsure footsteps. She doesn't really know what she's doing or where she's going." The hunter nodded proudly, Petunia briefly sniffing the spot he had gestured to, looking up at him with beady, black eyes.

Anishar was unfazed, grasping the beaming hunter by the shoulders and twisting him to the right. "Since you seem to know what you're talking about...for once, why don't you try explaining _that_." Falerian's eyes came to rest upon the slain corpse of a bear. With a fork sticking out from its chest.

The hunter scratched his chin in thought, shrugging at his friend indecisively. "Someone had a really big hankering for some bear? Fork wielding squirrels defending their tree? A new plague launched upon this world by the Scourge, naming this new and devastating epidemic, the Forksaken?"

Pushing away from Falerian with a roll of his eyes, Anishar approached the fallen animal, crouching down to examine the dining utensil closely. Daintily etched upon the flawless silver handle, were the initials, _L. F._ The man rose, raising his hands into the air in an eager stretch, cracking his knuckles loudly.

"Seems our girl might have a companion with her. One who likes to have their initials engraved in forks. See, I can do your job just as well, if not better than you. Why do I keep you around again?"

"Ah, that's simple. Who else but myself can detect traps, vanish into thin air and pick a pocket without getting caught?"

"...That's me, you imbecile. You're the gun totin', pig-taming, footprint sniffing, no-ammo-having idiot who smells like boar butt and stagnant mud. Are you aware of the fact that branches and leaves should grow from trees, not your shirt...or hair."

Running a calloused hand through his hair and plucking a small branch from his mane, Falerian flicked the branch at Anishar, replying good-naturedly, "Sorry, sometimes I get us confused. I just have to remember that I'm the cute one and you're the one with the stupid napkin on your face."

He then paused, staring off into the distance with a docile expression on his face. "In any case, the girl and whoever she's with has left us a clear and obvious trail to follow. This will be easier than replacing your friend's daggers with rose bouquets right before a duel."

"That was _you_? I lost that duel! _And_ it was utterly embarrassing! Why do you think I wear this bandana? To keep my face warm?! For fashion purposes?!" Anishar scowled beneath his face mask, giving his companion an accusing look.

"Well, yeah...but you have to admit it was funny. The look on that warrior's face when you handed him those flowers was worth it. It was even funnier when he proceeded to beat the living daylights out of you. I think I laughed for about three days straight. No need to go getting upset over it now, Anishar. He wasn't your type anyway."

Then, with a sly grin, he added, "The bandana has always been the classic rogue chic. Posh, practical, and great protection for the lower jaw region. I always know my jaw and unsightly chin rolls are well protected when _I_ where a bandana."

"Well I hope your bandana can protect you from me ripping out your tongue and shoving it down your throat, shortly followed by your teeth and other various body parts. Let's find this girl, take the scroll, get our ransom and get drunk. At least when you're drunk, you have an excuse for your stupidity. Now bring Baconstrip along and let's go."

Falerian waved dismissingly at the rogue as they mounted their steeds once more. "It's Petunia, not 'Baconstrip', _An_i. We'll catch up to them soon enough. They're on foot and we're on mounts. You do the math. We may even have time to let you pick some flowers along the way..."

His mocking jest elicited a cold stare from Anishar, who merely spurred his mount forward with a maddening jolt, bolting down the road to try and escape Falerian's sharp-tongued teasing and to quickly consume the distance between himself and the beckoning prize that was just out of reach. But not for long...

* * *

Coming Soon –_ Chapter Four: Murlocs, Mysteries and Mountains_

_Trisana and Lilam finally meet face to face with Anishar and Falerian. Cornered and out-matched, Trisana and Lilam's only hope is for a daring escape deep into the woods and ruins of Ashenvale. Ellisah is not too far behind, driven by an all consuming hatred to see to it that Trisana never makes it to Feralas. Stonetalon Mountains seems a good enough place to lose their pursuers, but can Trisana and Lilam manage to survive the mysteries and dangers that lurk within the ominous forests of Ashenvale? Plus, there are murlocs. Why? You'll have to find out…_


	7. Lilam's First Quest

**WaFfLe TiMe WiTh LiLaM PrEsEnTs:** _Lilam's First Quest_

* * *

It was Lilam's first visit to Coldridge Valley, as well as the first town she had came across in her first day as a warrior. Needless to say, the eager, young gnome was practically bursting with excitement and ready to undertake any task that would require her newfound warrior skills. Or, lack thereof. A rickety, weather worn wagon came into view, and Lilam headed for it cheerfully, wondering if her "expertise" could be put to use there. 

Lilam approached the first Dwarf she saw, flashing deep gnomish dimples with a charming smile. "Salutations! My name is Lilam Firesparks, soon to be great gnome warrior! And I--" The gnome stopped mid sentence, staring at the Dwarf with large, emerald orbs.

"What's on yer mind?", the Dwarf inquired, donning a quizzical expression.

"What... is that gold pointy thing on top of your head?!"

Confused, the Dwarf ran a meaty hand through his coarse mane. Feeling nothing, he glanced up above him. Nothing. "Yer aff yer heid, gnome. T'aint nothin' thur."

Lilam blinked. "I have no idea what you just said. Are you speaking Common? 'Cause I don't know Dwarvish...or gibberish. Only gibbers speak gibberish. Can. You. Under. Stand. What. I. AM. Say. Ing?"

The Dwarf raised a bushy eyebrow, tugging at his beard in apparent incomprehension. "Aye lass, I unnerstan. An' I be speakin' Common, not in me own tongue 'er gibberish. Ya' haven't been dippin' intah tha ale, now 'ave ya' lass?"

The gnome shook her head furiously, pointing at the odd, exclamation point shaped light hovering above the man's head. "But it's right there! I see it with my own two gnomey eyes! Are... are you an angel? Grant me a wish! I mean... grant me a wish... or three, _please_."

"Lass, Ah really dun be knowin' what yer talkin' a'bowt."

Lilam suddenly gasped, struck by a sudden realization. "OH MY SPROCKETS! Is it a tumor? Or maybe some brain sucking leech creature? IS IT CONTAGIOUS?"

Other people nearby began to steal strange glances at the pair, wondering what all the commotion was about. The Dwarf knelt down, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Now calm down, lass..."

"DID YOU JUST _TOUCH_ ME?! Eeeee!"

Clamping a hand over the gnome's mouth, the Dwarf sighed, shutting his eyes briefly before finding the strength within him to refrain from letting out a string of colorful phrases directed towards the clearly insane child.

"Listen, since ya' seem tah 'ave so much energy, Ah c'in put it tah good yoose. 'ow a'bowt ya' go an' keel some 'a those wolves over thar, an' bring me eight pieces 'a tough wolf meat. Then Ah'll give ya' a per 'a gloves tah keep yer finger on yer hand. 'ows abow't that, eh?"

Lilam nodded slowly, still eyeing the Dwarf suspiciously. "Alright, I can do that, no problem!"

Rising, the Dwarf reached out to pat her on head, but thought better of it. "Then off wit ya', lass. An' when yer done wit that, jus' come back tah me. My name be Sten. Sten Stoutarm."

The young warrior saluted sloppily. "Okay, Stenny, be right back!" She then made a wild dash into a randomly selected direction. Sten sighed, this time in relief. It would be a long while before she came back to disturb his tranquility once more.

Or so he thought. A moment later, there was a tugging on his beard, with the quirky gnome being the culprit. " When ya' says yer gonna' be roight back, ya' means it, dun't ya lass?"

"I just realized...I don't know which way to go. I looked over there, and over there and even all the way over there, but didn't find any wolf meat! Where do I hafta' go?" Lilam was dancing on her feet, eager to head out and get started on this seemingly simple quest.

Boggling at the gnome, Sten slowly lifted a hand and pointed directly across from them. "Lass...thur be wolves roight over thar. Roight in front 'a ya'."

Lilam glanced at the location he was pointing to, raising a hand to softly bonk herself on the forehead. "Oh, well I didn't look there. It was too obvious. You would think they'd be a little more... sneaky. But I guess that's only bears, huh? Okay, I'll be right back!"

She dashed off again, leaving the Dwarf to shake his head in a mixture of awe and annoyance. He needed an ale, and he needed one bad. After awhile, Lilam returned wearing a grin stretching from ear to ear.

"Ya' finally finish, lass? Let me take tha--" The man stopped mid-sentence, taking a closer look at what the gnome was carrying.

"Lookee what I found! I got some Silverleaf and some Peacebloom, and some of this green stuff, but I don't know what it is yet."

"That... would be grass."

"Oh... am I finished with the quest now?" Lilam asked, offering the dumbfounded Dwarf the herbs.

"Uhh, no. Listen closely now, lass. Head South an' keel some 'a those wolves an' then brang me tha' meat. Got it?"

Lilam swung a hand in the air to salute, smacking the Dwarf in the face with a stalk of Peacebloom and a flurry of grass.

The gnome turned to begin walking, but paused, staring despondently at her compass.

"Mr. Cousin Dwarf... there is no South direction on my compass. Only N, E, S, and W. Maybe your compass is broken."

The Dwarf pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers, taking deep, relaxing breaths. "Lass... S be standin' fer South. N be North, E be East and W be West. An' then thar be tha' cardinal signs, but they er'nt on tha' compass."

Lilam's eyes grew wide, shaking the compass up and down frantically. "And now there are cardinals in my compass?! How do I get them out?! The birdies might die!"

Exasperated, Sten grasped the gnome by the shoulders and pushed her none-too-gently into the right direction. "Off wit ya'!"

When the gnome finally disappeared from sight, the man let out a long sigh of relief, leaning against the cart to support himself. The beginnings of a migraine pounded unmercifully in the tender region behind his eyes, so he shut them, almost dozing off when he was jolted back from semi-consciousness.

Only to see eight slathering, wild eyed wolves lead by Lilam, heading straight for him. Even before the man could empty his bladder, Lilam hopped into the cart at the last second, leaving the wolves to circle Sten ravenously.

Sten whimpered, covering his face with his beard just as the wolves fell upon him...

Lilam peeked out of the cart. Seeing no sign of any imminent danger, she slid down, waddling over to what looked like a pile of rags on the ground. Upon closer inspection, Lilam realized that those rags were indeed Sten. "I thought the quest you sent me on would be easier if you just killed the wolves and got the meat yourself," Lilam stated, peering down at the twitching man on the ground. "But you didn't even kill one wolf! No wonder you need my help! Want me to go try again?"

A blood stained, contorted hand reached into Sten's pocket and produced a pair of gleaming, mail gloves. Sliding them ever so slowly towards the gnome, Sten whispered, "Take tha' gloves. Take tha' gloves an' go!"

Lilam picked up the gloves, inspecting them with a mild scrutiny. "But I want a different color..."

"**GO!**"

The gnome yelped, sprinting off to go find a kinder, more helpful Dwarf she could offer her warrior services to, muttering to herself, "Meany cousin Dwarf... he didn't even say thank you. How rude!"

Sten had lost feeling in his legs, unable to even lift himself from the ground as he lay cursing Lilam a thousand times over. A shadow suddenly fell upon him, and a rush of relief engulfed the Dwarf, tears of happiness flowing down his ruddy cheeks. Finally, someone to help him and take his battered, bloody body to a healer!

The gnome hovering above him blinked twice. "OH MY SPROCKETS! WHAT'S THAT APPENDAGE GROWING FROM YOUR HEAD?!"

Sten cried for a long, long time...


	8. Murlocs, Mysteries and Mountains, Part I

**Chapter Four: Murlocs, Mysteries and Mountains (Part I)**

* * *

"Fishies like candy, yes they do! They eat it for breakfast and I do too! They're slimy and dull and they wiggle and spit! But I fry 'em and eat 'em though they smell like...Trissy, what rhymes with 'spit'?"

Lilam glanced at Trisana briefly, trying to keep a watchful eye on the bobber drifting listlessly in the dark, murky water off Auberdine's shore. When Trisana had pointed out that they shouldn't travel exposed on the open roads, Lilam had suggested they travel along the shoreline where they were least likely to be searched for or run into any more bears.

Trisana had found the sluggish trudge through the heavy, sinking sand tedious and exhausting, pondering over where her gnome companion found the energy to skip along side her with boundless vivacity, pausing only to wait for Trisana to catch up. Eventually, they decided to rest for a bit, giving Trisana a chance to recover her strength before they entered into the territory known as the Zoram Strand, and Lilam a chance to amuse herself with her favorite pastime.

Instead of answering Lilam's question, Trisana asked one of her own. "Is it wise to be singing so loud while fishing? Have you caught anything yet?"

The gnome quickly raised a pudgy finger to her lips, her eyes narrowing in blatant annoyance. "Shhhhh! You're going to scare away all the fishies! You have to be quiet! Quiet like a fish!"

"But...you were...the singing...I wasn't..." Trisana began, stammering from puzzlement and overall beginning to wonder if she would ever figure out Lilam and all her unique idiosyncrasies.

However, she couldn't help a small, content smile, knowing full well that she was more than grateful for the gnome's company, no matter how odd and peculiar their conversations were. Lilam successfully managed to keep her mind off other things, and from plummeting into an inescapable pit of mind-numbing depression. For this, her gratitude could not be expressed by words, only the wide curvature of her smile and the sparkle of hope in her eyes.

The girl rose from the decrepit piece of driftwood she had seated herself on, fervently brushing off her cloak as she said, "I think it's time we started off again. I'm ready to be back on solid land. I must have half this beach in my slippers by now."

Lilam nodded, humming serenely to herself as she reeled in her line. "You're gonna' have to get a fishing pole, Trissy, so I can teach you how to fish. I know all the tricks! Like, instead of waiting for the little bobby ball to move, you have to anticerpate the fishies movements. So right before they grab the bait, you reel in as fast as you can!"

Trisana raised a delicately thin eyebrow, looking at Lilam skeptically. "Lilam, have you ever caught a fish? Ever?"

The gnome tapped herself lightly on the side of her head, thinking. "Well, there was this one time...wait, no. That was a boxy crate. People like to throw their trash in the water for some reason. A lot of times I leave a whole stack of it in the sand, in case the owners want it back. But I've seen fish, if that cou-- What was that?!"

The pair whirled around wildly, eyes searching frantically for the mysterious sound that had startled them. There was nothing there. "Strange..." Trisana muttered suspiciously, beginning to feel a tight knot of fear forming in her chest.

"I saw it! It was huge! Like a flying, twelve-legged, hideous, bear-owl-oyster-basilisk...thing. BOOB for short. Do you think it's friendly?"

The rising dread in Trisana's mind froze to a halt as she gaped at Lilam. "What in the name of **(1)** the White Lady and the Blue Child are you talking about?"

Trisana knew it was a mistake to ask that question, but somehow it had escaped from her hanging mouth out of pure disbelief. However, the gnome's response, which would have been nothing more than utter nonsense anyway, was interrupted by a voice behind them.

-----------

**Index**: (1) _Azeroth has two moons: The larger bright and silver moon, known as the White Lady, is worshipped as Elune by the Night Elves. The smaller cool, blue-green moon is known as the Blue Child_

-----------_  
_

"No, we're not 'friends'. Remove the 'r' and that's what me and my friend are, gnome."

"I told ya', I told ya'! The BOOB snuck up on us, hwaaahh!" Lilam spun on her feet, only to find a night elf wearing a bandana and brandishing twin daggers. "You're not a BOOB...I don't think. What's a 'emove'? Is it a relative to the BOOB?" Lilam wanted to poke him, to see if he was wearing some sort of disguise, but refrained. Poking people was rude, as her mother had told her while she was poking her.

Trisana was slower to react, turning sharply as she gripped her staff until her hands began to ache. She had never seen the man before, but by his entrance and his words, she knew that his intentions were not admirable in any respect.

"Not the 'r' in 'remove', you twit. The 'r' in 'friends'!" The man's ears twitched in annoyance.

"Ohhh. So...you're a fried?"

"No! You took out the 'n'! It'sfiend! FIEND! See, you ruin the effectiveness of the entrance if I have to EXPLAIN IT TO YOU!"

Lilam wrinkled her nose at the man's outburst, wondering why he was getting so worked up. "Oh, fiend...I get it now...so, what's a fiend? Do they come fried? I am a little hungry, seeing as I didn't catch any fish. Trissy scared them all away!"

Anishar vaguely heard the gnome over his perverse yet irritated thoughts. First, I'm going to cut off her nose. Gnomes think they're so perfect, with their perfect, button noses. It'll make a great chew toy for Petunia. Or a nice entertainment piece to decorate my coffee table. It is kind of bland at the moment, but it was a steal. Literally. But now I'm getting off track. Okay, first cut off her nose...but wait...she might keep talking. Gotta' do something about that motor mouth of hers first. Silence her first, then start hacking things off. That sounds like a plan...Why do I have a coffee table? I don't even drink coffee...

"Alright, you plague infested bonebags, listen up! See this? This...**IS MY BOOMSTICK**!"

Falerian crashed onto the scene from the woods that trimmed the very edge of the shoreline, Petunia rushing after him with a vicious snarl. He came to a violent stop next to Anishar, pelting the rogue with damp sand as he skid to a grinding halt. Anishar blinked wearily at him, shaking his head with a deep sigh.

The hunter glanced at the two girls who were staring at him with large eyes, and his companion who kept sighing heavily. Falerian rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, grinning crookedly at his friend. "Sorry, I thought we were fighting undead again. You know how much I enjoy a good mercy killing, putting those deadheads back in holes where they belong. Good times, huh?"

With a casual shrug, Falerian lifted his gun to eye level, aiming the double barrels at Trisana. "Well, in any case, my entrance doesn't really matter. All you need to know is that I'm the one with the gun. So, how about you give us the scroll, so we can kill you in some horrible fashion and then get stinking drunk."

Anishar patiently rubbed the bridge of his nose, making a mental note to rip out Falerian's vocal cords and strangle him with them.

"Please...let me do the talking from now on. It seems that big, heaping bowl of stupid you had this morning hasn't made it through your system yet."

Trisana felt herself begin to lose control of her muscles, her legs beginning to tremble and knees threatening to buckle. Who were these strange men and what did they want with her? While she did not know the answers to these questions, the prospect of actually finding out frightened her to the core of her soul...

"Wha...What are you talking about? What scroll? You must have me confused with someone else." Trisana was trying to remain calm, but her voice trembled noticeably, warbling high and dipping low in awkward places. The shotgun was cocked loudly.

"Don't play coy with us, girl" Anishar sneered, twirling a dagger playfully in his hands. "You'll confuse Fal's feeble mind and he just might press the trigger in frustration. So I suggest you hand over the scroll and do so quickly."

The girl swallowed hard, her heart beating at a frantic **(2)** allegro as if anticipating the dagger thrust that would cease its rhythmic pulse forever.

"I...I really don't know what you're talking about! I don't have any scroll, you have to believe me! I'm telling the truth!" Panic and fear took hold of her throat, clenching it shut just as a frightened sob made a daring leap up her esophagus.

Patience wearing thin, the rogue's eyes flashed menacingly as he hissed through clenched teeth, "Now listen here, you little bit--"

"Woah, woah, woah!" Falerian lowered the gun to the ground, turning to stare disapprovingly at Anishar. "Watch your language!"

"...What is wrong with you?! Are you insane?"

"No, I'm considerate, unlike you. I thought you had class, but it seems I was wrong. There are innocent minds present, for Elune's sake!"

"Do you know how much I hate you? Because I'm not sure I can find the precise words to describe just how much I want to rip out your spine and beat you with it until you stop screaming."

"Anishar...let's not fight in front of the children."

By this time, the rogue began to sputter with indignation and rage, but he pair were interrupted by a squeaky shout of triumph.

"Haha! No one messes with my friend Trissy when I'm around! You should never take your eyes off of a warrior! We're sneaky! Like rogues...only shinier. Prepare to make your meeter!"

With this exclamation, Lilam reached behind her, whipping out her weapon and pointing it at the open-mouthed duo. Her fishing pole quivered slightly, Lilam's face dropping as she eyed the useless rod in her hands.

"Why, why, why do I always forget to put this away before a fight? Every single time!" The gnome began pounding herself on the forehead with a chubby fist.

Anishar's previous ire was forgotten, replaced by a dark humor. With the speed of a striking snake, the rogue sheathed his blades with the soft hiss of leather, his hands then darting out and snatching Lilam by her collar, hauling her into the air before she could protest or react.

Laughing deviously, he grabbed her stubby legs and released her collar, letting her dangle upside-down in his grasp. "Hey, Fal, how about a little target practice? Looks like this gnome has just volunteered."

The hunter chuckled, shifting his gun more comfortably in his hands. "Well, actually, I've got a better idea. The scientific part of my brain has always pondered about the spatial capacities and expansion properties of the lungs, especially in the gnome race."

Anishar blinked. "Meaning?"

"Let's see how long the little pipsqueak can hold her breath underwater."

------------

**Index**: (2) Allegro : adj : (of tempo) fast n 1: a brisk and lively tempo 2: a musical composition or passage performed quickly in a brisk lively manner adv : in a quick and lively tempo;

------------

"NO!" Trisana lurched forward, making a futile grab for the gnome. Lilam was in danger because of her, and she could not idly stand by and let another innocent person be hurt because of her.

Without warning, Petunia charged forward, grunting warningly at Trisana, startling her and causing her to teeter off balance and fall backwards with a cry of surprise.

Falerian winked at the girl patronizingly while a wicked grin curled the ends of Anishar's mouth. "Let me down, let me down, let me down! Oooo, when I get down, you're going to be in big, jumbo, humongous trouble! Fight me fair, not in the air!" Lilam shouted, squirming in the elf's grip.

She suddenly stopped wriggling, letting her hands swing loosely below her and making a face as she added, "Oh no...now all the blood is going to my head...Eeeee! My head is gonna' explode into a billion million Lilam pieces! And I can't count to a billion million! Oh, the ironical irony is so ironious it makes my head wanna' explode twice...wait a tinker tocking minute...what does ironious mean? Did I make that up or is that a real word? I think I have a dictionary in my bag...but I don't know how to spell it! Oh, the ironicalness of it all!"

Anishar glowered at the gnome from underneath his mask, trying to ignore the beginning of a migraine that was starting to make his temples throb. "How about we just hold her under until she shuts up?"

The hunter nodded, noticing the look in his companion's eyes. "Sounds good to me."

Trisana was frozen in place, held at bay by the savage looking beast and her pearly, razor-sharp tusks. Beginning to feel lightheaded, Lilam made a clumsy swipe at Anishar with her pole, not willing to be defeated without a fight.

The rogue merely caught it, snickering at the tiny warrior's pathetic attempt. His amusement was caught in his throat and chocked upon as the air suddenly grew heavy, thick with an anxious silence that sent a tingle down the rogue's spine.

"No one...touches my fishing pole! **IT'S RUDE**!" Lilam's face turned beet red, flushing an angry crimson while her emerald eyes lit up into roaring flames. Anishar glanced at Falerian, who only shrugged and stared back blankly.

Lilam's hands flew to her belt, the buckle coming undone with the twist of her fingers and the belt snaking through the belt loops before snapping into the air and across Anishar's face. The gnome fell from his grasp, falling gently into the spongy sand below.

The rogue cursed aloud, only managing to spit out a few choice words before Lilam tackled him around the knees, knocking him into the shocked and awestruck hunter. And with her pants loosely coiled around her ankles, Lilam proceeded to whip the pair with both pole and belt.

"Good manners receives a smile anyplace. Bad manners gets a belt across the face!"

Seeing the boar turn to look back at it's fallen master, Trisana willed herself not to think as she swiftly smashed her staff into the animal's skull. Not waiting to see the damage done, the girl rose to shaky feet, snatching Lilam's wrist just as she brought it back for another vicious strike.

"C'mon Lilam, let's go!" The gnome grasped her pants, pulling them up to her waist before sprinting after Trisana, holding her pants tightly.

"Lilam...you're crazy!" Trisana panted, glancing at her diminutive friend.

"Yes, crazy smart! That's the best kind of smarts! Sometimes, I even oversmart myself..."

Her gaze returning back to where she was running, Trisana noticed a group of small structures coming up fast. "What are those?"

Lilam followed Trisana's gaze. With a yelp, Lilam dug her heels into the sand, nearly tumbling forwards as she stumbled to a stop.

"What are you doing, Lilam? We can't stop now, they'll catch us!" The warrior merely outstretched an arm, pointing at oddly shaped shadows that began to slither from rickety looking huts that dotted the shoreline.

"Grlblblrlblrl!" An unintelligible cry rang out in unison as the murlocs emerged from their homes and from the sea, slowly approaching the two girls with wide, wild expressions and waving pointy, glistening weapons high in the air.

"Trissy?" Lilam asked, remaining strangely calm.

Trisana inclined her head slightly towards Lilam, but unable to take her eyes off the sea of caterwauling fish men.

"Now would be a good time to use your moony elf powers."

"Lilam...I don't have any powers."

"Oh. Well it seems we're in a bit of a pickle. Well, not really a pickle. More like a sandwich. You can't really be in a pickle. But we can be the pickles in the sandwich. You know, I really don't like pickles all that much. And I really hope those fishy men don't either..."

Anishar darkly rubbed the enflamed side of his face, a red welt hidden beneath his mask. Falerian stood, brushing clumps of sand from his person as he glanced in the direction Trisana and Lilam had disappeared off to.

"Now we'll never catch up to them. If only you could somehow gain a burst of super speed and I could adopt the aspects of some fleet and swift feline. Of course, that would be impossible."

"Every time you open your mouth I have the irresistible urge to slit my own throat. Then I realize how foolish that would be. It'd be much more satisfying to slit yours."

The hunter slung his weapon over his shoulder, gesturing off into the distance. "And now dear friend, the great hunter Falerian said with a handsome smile, let us be off, for our pursuit is far from over and our goal far from accomplished."

Turning ever so slowly to face his companion, Anishar furrowed his brows at him, inquiring, "What the nether was that supposed to be?"

"I was just trying to make the chase more dramatic. I think its called role-playing or something. Want to give it a shot? Only, you can't be Falerian, because I already called dibs."

"How about you be the Falerian whose brain actually functions and is not just hollow shell for your stupid thoughts?"

"You're just jealous of my creativity. When will you finally admit it and stop with your embarrassing self-denial?"

"As soon as I find out just how far I can shove these boots up your--"

With a cheeky wave, Falerian raced forward with the speed and agility of a cat, letting Anishar's sentence hang in the air, unfinished. Anishar sprinted after him, wanting to be the first to wrap his hands around the gnome's tiny neck. Even Falerian would not deny him this pleasure. And it would only be his utmost pleasure to put the gnome out of her, and his, misery.

"Salutations, fishy men! My name is Lilam! My favorite color is green! If you let us by, I promise never to beat one of you up and take all your treasures again! Cross my heart and hope its fair, may I get eaten by a bear."

Lilam's plea was barely heard over the garbled cacophony that the angry murlocs were producing, working themselves up into a psychotically gleeful fervor. The gnome wrinkled her nose at the encroaching army, a clear sign of her stubbornness not willing to not give in and an idiotically fearless mien.

"Oooo! I know! Trissy, let's run into the sea! They'll never catch us in the water, haha! They can't swim without thumbs, it's impossible!"

Trisana nearly swallowed her tongue. "Lilam...murlocs can swim. And they have thumbs. I'm not even quite sure what that has to do with swimming. We need a better plan, and we need it fast!"

Lilam pondered for a moment, calling upon all the cerebral energy she could muster. Which wasn't much.

"So...what you're saying is...we can't drown them either?"

Trisana couldn't take it anymore. The situation was ludicrous, they were sandwiched between two forces that were bent on their imminent demise, and Lilam was not helping in the least with her naiveté.

"No, Lilam, THEY CAN SWIM! Don't you understand? It's pointless! Either way, whatever we choose, whatever we do, wherever we go...we are going to die, right here, right now! We are going to die!"

The gnome fell silent, the light in her eyes dimming and the vivacious flames of youth simmering into nothingness. Lilam could not ascertain why Trisana would say such a thing, but she could comprehend that the girl was frightened and swiftly losing all hope.

Now was not the time to devise plans or discuss strategy. It was time to be heroic.

"Trissy, a warrior is sorta' like a piecrust. We're tough at times, yet soft and spongy at others. We're flaky, and sometimes half baked. We glow and shine...with butter added...or some other margarine substitute. We're crunchy, and boy do we crunch a lot. We laugh at the sight of big knives and forks, haha! Not to mention we're tasty and go well with milk.

"But deep down in our gooey, chewy center, we just want to protect what's most important. The blueberries. Trissy, you are a blueberry and I am a pie crust. My hard outer shell will protect your life juices from being spilled, no matter what utensils they come after me with! They will have to get through me to get to you! For the crust is not truly a crust without the filling inside!"

After this rousing speech, Lilam slipped her fishing pole behind her, eyes glowing radiantly with new, stronger determination. The sword at her side was unsheathed and she lifted it high into the air with both hands, her shrill battle cry ringing majestically across the shore as sea spray cascaded over her in an iridescent shower.

"I am piecrust, hear me bake! My sword shall taste your vile, fruity filling!"

With all the ruckus from Lilam and the murlocs, Trisana was only mildly certain that she had heard something snap within her brain, thusly shutting it down to die a slow and suffocating death. At least that's what her numb mind felt like had happened, unable to even blink stupidly at the small warrior.

But what really made the situation even more unbelievable and ultimately surreal, was the fact that the murlocs had stopped their death march, every single bug eyed gaze resting on Lilam.

In some ways, Trisana felt exactly like they looked. Bug eyed and intellectually depraved. "Look Trissy! I did...something...not sure what yet, but it was something good and warrior-like!"

Beyond trying to make sense of anything, Trisana followed the gaze of the dumb-struck amphibiotic creature. And gaped along with them.

"Lilam...it wasn't something...you did."

"Huwhat? What are you talking about, Trissy? Geez, sometimes you make no sense at all."

"Lilam...your...underwear..."

Perplexed, the gnome glanced down. Her pants were bunched at her ankles, yet again. In her haste, she had dropped her pants and belt to grasp hold of her sword. And now, every eye seemed to be glued onto her panties. They were sky blue, speckled with tiny dancing murlocs with top hats and canes. Her favorite pair.

Lilam blushed, attempting to explain herself to her riveted audience. "Oh...lug nuts. Well, you see, I wanted the pair with the dancing Arch Druidy elf man on them...but it was a buy one get one free deal. Boy, are my cheeks red. I mean the ones on my face! The cheeks on my face!"

With the murlocs frozen in their tracks like hapless, amphibious statues, Lilam no longer viewed them as a threat. Like the practiced warrior she was...in her mind, Lilam moved to sheath her sword and perhaps regain some of her humility by pulling up her pants. Instead, the sword met with empty space, as she had conveniently forgotten that her sheath was connected to her belt, which still lay coiled in the sand.

The hilt of the sword slipped from her fingers and took a dive into the sand, making Lilam wrinkle her nose in agitation and overall frustration at her compromising position and awkward clumsiness. "Oh fizzle wazzle!" was her annoyed cry as she bent down to retrieve her sword.

Instantaneously, the army of murlocs all knelt to their knobby knees, bowing low to the bewildered, pants-less gnome. "Lilam, what did you do?" Trisana gasped, trying to remember that swallowing was a good thing and should be practiced regularly.

Lilam shrugged, debating whether or not to use her sword to scratch an itch in the small of her back. "I dunno. Maybe murlocs like sniffing the sand...or their knees all exploded at the same time. Oh, I know! They all lost money in the sand and are looking for it...with their noses. Have you ever lost a coin in the sand before? It's almost impossible to find...but I never thought to search for it with my nose...it's so obvious now! When you lose something, it's always right under your nose!"

"No, I mean they're bowing to you, Lilam."

The warrior nodded matter-of-factly. "Of course they are. It's only polite to bow to someone when you meet them. I would curtsey but I'm not wearing a dress...or pants. At least my skivvies are clean. Mum always said to pack clean skivvies 'cause you never know what might happen. Do the murlocs know my Mum?"

"That's not what I meant" Trisana muttered, taking a nervous glance behind her. Two dots appeared on the horizon, heading towards them at a swift, unnatural pace. "Lilam, it must have been something you said! Make the murlocs attack those two after us so we can escape! Hurry!"

Lilam scratched the side of her head with one, thick finger. "I don't remember what I said! Sometimes my mouth just says things. I try to listen, but I think my mouth moves faster than my ears can hear. Someone once said I had ADD or something, but I don't see what adding has to do with it. I'm very good at math."

Ignoring the blank expression on Trisana's face, Lilam put on her thinking cap, which seemed to be underused and possibly defective.

"Okay, let's see...raggle fraggle! Nope? Umm...zippity do dah? Squiggly spootch! Yibbity flingflong? Sufferin' succotash? Shake 'n bake!" The murlocs remained on their knees, not even eliciting one gibberish response.

Lilam snapped her fingers, a crooked smile splaying across her face. "I know! Klatu Verata Nicto!" Nothing stirred. "Man, that one always works..."

"Lilam, hurry!" Trisana clutched her staff tight in her grasp, throwing another panicked look behind them. The hunter and rogue had slowed, but their path and destination still remained the same.

"Well," Lilam began, seeming to recall something from long ago, "there was something I heard this cousin Dwarf say once...and everyone got all riled up. They all took out their weapons and there was a lot of yelling."

"Okay, give it a shot, it couldn't hurt" Trisana replied nervously, dancing on her feet. Seeing as how they only managed to escape the clearly deranged pair by a fluke the first time, she seriously doubted that they would be so lucky as to flee a second time.

Lilam's head bobbed up and down in reply, drawing a deep breath as she filled her lungs with the salty, sea air. "**SHAKE THAT BOOTY!**

Trisana's head whipped towards the smugly grinning gnome, trying to stop her ears from ringing and hoping she had not heard what she thought she'd heard.

"...And just what was this Dwarf doing when he said this?"

"Oh, he was talking to some moony elf lady. She was dancing on the mailbox. It was really inconvenient, because I couldn't check my mail. The Dwarf didn't seem to mind."

Their conversation was cut off as a knee-quaking, throaty cry pealed through the air, carrying on capricious, cool breezes. The murlocs rose to their feet, shaking makeshift weapons into the air as they lifted their rather bulbous heads in a deafening battle cry.

"Yes! Shake your booties!" Lilam exclaimed, joining in the growing excitement. "Shake your fishy hineys like you've never shaken them before!" The gnome indicated to the two approaching men, pointing at them with her sword as she struck a heroic pose. "Now go! SHAKE THEIR BOOTIES!"

The ruckus rose to a fever pitch as the mass of murlocs rushed forward past Trisana and Lilam, charging at the hunter and rogue with murder and bloodshed in their eyes.

"Lilam...you frighten me."

The gnome nodded at both her murloc army and Trisana's confession. "Yes, I am pretty intimidating. Like a bat...with axes for wings. Or a pirate bunny. They're hopping mad! Yet adorably evil..."

"...Right. Now let's leave before something else happens to us!"

"Well, retreating is not very warriorish, but I suppose I can keep some of my dignity."

Her first step forward quickly made her eat those words...and a good mouthful of sand. Her pants, still bunched around her ankles, made certain that not only did she trip and land face first into the gritty sand, but bruise the softest part of her dignity in the fall.

"Ow! Bolts and gears, that smarted! The ground just came up and tripped me when I wasn't looking! I demand a rematch!"

Trisana sighed, hauling the warrior up and passing her the discarded belt. Lilam took the belt gratefully, pulling her pants back into place and looping the belt before buckling it securely into place.

Before Lilam could begin another barrage of senseless conversation, Trisana took hold of her hand, dragging her further down the shore. They needed to put some distance between them and the men chasing after them. The murlocs would buy them some time, but just how much, Trisana did not know. And she planned on being long gone before she, or her pursuers found out...

* * *

Rounding the bend just as his temporary sprint came to an end, Anishar could clearly and unobstructedly see across the entire expanse of the beach. But it was not quite the sight he had expected, nor desired, to see.

"What is it with gnomes? Do they all share the same gene which makes them remove their clothing and run around like little, half naked, mutated infants? They look like something a human excreted from the deepest, darkest part of his bowels. If you'd excuse me one moment, Fal, I think I'm going to go pour hot, abrasive sand into my eyes. Once the sand gets in their good and begins lacerating my corneas, I feel that my subsequent weeping with bloody tears of pain should be sufficient enough to purge my sight, mind and soul. There are some things no man should be subjected to..."

Falerian nodded in agreement, slowing his pace to match his companions. "I hear ya'. And what about those male gnomes thinking they're hot stuff, strutting around with their hard, muscular...glistening bodies. You know what I mean?"

The rogue swung his head to face Falerian, missing a step and nearly diving face first into the sand. Anishar tried to speak, tried to form comprehensible syllables from his mouth, but absolutely nothing came out.

"I mean, I'm not... you know. I like females. They make the babies. And if they didn't, then who would? Let me give you a hint; it wouldn't be me and I'd probably smash you in the back of the head with my gun and relinquish you to scientific research where you would become the first man to ever get knocked up. But I am very secure in my masculinity.

"If I saw a particularly handsome man, I could stop him and say so, no problem. Like, for instance, Anishar, that bandana really goes well with your skin tone. It compliments your eyes. Oh, and the way you keep the underneath of your nails clean is not only hygienic, but I'm sure it's extremely sexy to any woman. You, Anishar, are a handsome man.

"But I digress. It's just that, have you ever noticed how built those little twerps are? All sinewy with rippling muscles and tight, solid chests? I mean, I'd be ripped like that too if spent all day baking cookies or whatever it is gnomes do all day. But look at this bow plunking finger of mine. Have you ever seen a sexier finger than this? Now don't be shy, we're both grown men here. No need to be bashful, you can tell me."

Anishar merely gave the hunter a strange look. "Anishar, what's wrong? Did my comment make you uncomfortable? Do... you want to talk about it? 'Cause we could talk about it if you want to."

The rogue shook his head slowly, appearing somewhat dazed. "No... it's not that. It's... I can't decide whether to jam my daggers into my ears until the stupid from your mouth can't get in and die a very painful death from hemorrhaging in my brain, or to hold you under the waves until the bubbles stop. What do you think?"

Falerian didn't receive a chance to reply (which probably saved his life in the long run), before Petunia's nasally squeal rang out warningly, halting the pair in their tracks. With a sudden, indistinguishable shout from the pants-less gnome, a fervent roar from amphibiotic larynx's answered the call, the small army of murlocs charging at the two elves with murderous intention flashing in their eyes.

Falerian was the first to find his voice. "So... Anishar. Do you like frog legs?"

"... I hope they rip out your still beating heart and eat it right in front of you."

"You know, you do this adorable twitchy thing with your eye when you talk like that."

"Just shut up and send Baconfat in to intercept the murlocs."

"You know, Petunia's standing in front of us. She heard that, and it hurts her inside. We'll come back to this discussion later on. Now, it's time to make loud noises from my gun. And seriously, do you like frog legs? Because I know this great recipe I'm just dying to share. They're so good, they'll make you wanna' eviscerate your stomach, pull them out of your digestive tract and eat 'em again."

"... When we finally get around to that discussion you wanted to have, remind me to teach you this wonderful game I know that I'm just dying to share. It's called 'catch the dagger with your spleen'..."

* * *

Trisana was dragging Lilam along as fast as the gnome's short, stocky legs would allow. The gnome put up little protest, until she stopped all of a sudden, her hand slipping from Trisana's grasp. "Lilam, what are you doing? We have to keep going!"

Lilam had crouched down and was sifting through the warm sand, appearing to be searching for something. "I saw a pretty shell, and I wanted to show it to you. Besides, there are those big, water snakey things up ahead. They're not very nice. They might try and take my pretty shell! They can take my life...but never my shell! I found it first!"

Trisana shook her head wordlessly, reaching for the gnome's hand once more, but her hand never connected, frozen in mid-reach. Lilam looked up at her with a quizzical expression painted on her face, rising slowly as she clasped the shell she had finally found tightly in her gritty hands. "Trissy... what's wrong?"

The girl was staring out into the endless expansion of water, mesmerized by the violent, churning sea. "I... don't know. I just.. have this strange feeling in the pit of my stomach."

Lilam studied her for a moment before nodding, as if the girl's statement had made perfect sense. "Oh, you just got the gas. It can be a little scary at first but don't worry, it'll go away soon. You should watch what you eat so you don't get those sudden gas attacks."

"No, that's not it..." Trisana's pale eyes narrowed, searching across the frothy water for something she could not see. "I think... a big wave..."

"Yup, you've got the gas. C'mon, we can go, now that I've got my shell. I will love it and treasure it forever and ever!"

Trisana didn't move. Lilam tugged at her gown, beginning to grow concerned. "If the gas is that bad, me and my shell can go stand over there if it'd make you feel better."

Trisana hands darted out, taking the oblivious gnome by the cheeks and turning her head towards the sea. The largest, most immense wave of water Lilam had ever seen was barreling towards the shore, blocking out most of the sky overhead like some ravenous, yawning mouth bent on devouring anything that was foolish enough to stand in it's path.

Lilam blinked. "Oh. That... is some weird, psychic gas you've got. I know, use your druidy powers to stop it!"

"I don't know any druidic spells, Lilam! I have no powers!"

"What do you mean? I thought all moony elves have druidy powers! What else are you not telling me? Next are you gonna' tell me that moony elves and those water snakey people are related?! How about Arthas was once a good guy? Lady Prestor is really a dragon in disguise? I don't know what's true and what's false anymore!"

"Well that tidal wave is truly going to drown us if we don't do something quick!"

Trisana plunged her staff deep into the wet, clingy sand beneath the soft, shifting top layer. It was too late to run, so all that was left was to pray to Elune, Cenarius and whatever other higher power that might be listening. "Grab onto the staff and don't let go!"

Lilam managed to get out one last thing before the wave cast an impossibly tall shadow across the beach and descended upon them. "Trissy... next time your gas tells you about a ginormous wave thing... could you ask it for a rain coat? My socks are gonna' get so wet..."

* * *

Anishar had just tossed aside a particularly frisky murloc who was squirming on his back trying futilely to tackle the elf to the ground, when, without warning, the murlocs all stopped fighting, then turned and ran, their gibberish calls lingering in their wake.

"That... went extremely well," Falerian said with a lopsided grin, patting Anishar fondly on the shoulders.

The rogue jerked away, grasping Falerian by the shoulders in a vice-like grip as he pulled their faces close. "**YOU. SHOT. ME. IN.THE. EAR**."

The hunter shrugged dismissingly. "There was a murloc on your back. You know I don't really go for that whole 'aiming' thing. Besides, it's only the tip. It'll grow back."

"**YOU MENTALLY DEFICIENT BUFFOON, EARS DON'T GROW BACK! DO I LOOK LIKE A TROLL TO YOU?!**"

"Well..if I squint and turn my head to the side and add tusks to your face in my mind...then maybe."

The pair grew silent as the sky above them darkened suddenly, the air turning cool and suspiciously salty. With dread filled eyes, the duo glanced up, the wall of brackish water consuming the cloudy sky as it roared towards them without mercy or any signs of stopping.

"Anishar... will you hold me?"

"Sorry, I couldn't hear you, some ignoramus **SHOT MY EAR!**"

"But you can still wear earrings right?"

The low grinding of teeth and the sounds of someone being violently choked were the last things heard by the two elves before they too were swallowed up by the voracious, unfeeling sea.

* * *

Ellisah rose from her crouch, brushing off the damp sand that had collected and clung to her robe. "Yes, these are Trisana's footprints, I am certain. And by the shape and size of the set beside hers, I'd say she's traveling with a gnome." The Sentinel standing at attention beside her relaxed slightly, finding Ellisah to be in a better mood than she had been all day long.

"There were no signs of Trisana down the beach. It appears she had already moved on from here and is headed for the Zoram Strand."

The druidess nodded vaguely, her eyes spotting a trio of footprints not too far from Trisana's. A pair of prints much larger than Trisana's and one made by a pig or boar of sorts. The hands at Ellisah's side curled into tight fists until her knuckles became devoid of color.

That damned rogue... and now it seems that he has picked up a traveling partner too. No matter. The are both merely walking corpses now, awaiting my hands to send them into the hellish Nether they so rightfully deserve to burn in for eternity. Just as they spilled my parent's blood, I shall spill theirs until their blood and Trisana's coats my dagger and their pleas for mercy assuage the tormenting guilt in my heart...

Noticing the Sentinel was staring at her strangely, Ellisah shifted on her feet, banishing the dark thoughts to the back of her mind. "Tell the others to return to the mounts and get ready to move out immediately."

The woman nodded stiffly, asking, "May I ask where we're headed, Sister?"

Ellisah dramatically swung an arm and pointed, gesturing towards the jagged peaks of mountains brushing treetops and sky in the distance. "Trisana will attempt to head for Stonetalon Mountains in order to lose us. However, we shall intercept her path in Astranaar. She will never set one foot on those mountains."

The Sentinel looked skeptical. "Are you certain that is the route the girl will take?"

Ellisah was in the woman's face in a flash, hissing, "Are you questioning me?"

The woman retreated a few steps back, hiding a scowl. "No, Sister. I was just wondering how you were so certain that the girl would take that path."

"Don't you worry about that," the druidess replied, letting the ire that had so quickly taken over her drain from her face and her words, "The Arch Druid put me in charge, and your only concern is following my orders quickly and without question. Now go and do as I said."

The frowning warrior bowed shallowly, then rushed off to carry out her order. Ellisah watched her depart, absentmindedly stroking the hilt of her dagger hanging at her side. She only hoped she could maintain a cool head and a keen mind until she finally met up with Trisana and her avaricious pursuers. Only then would she be able to release the violent rage that threatened to consume her...

* * *

**End of Part I:** _Murlocs, Mysteries and Mountains_


	9. Murlocs, Mysteries and Mountains, Part 2

**Chapter Four: Murlocs, Mysteries and Mountains (Part II )**

* * *

Trisana crawled across the soggy, sticky sand, staff still in hand, coughing up the brackish sea water that had been forced down her throat and had filled her gasping lungs. Lilam was beside her, her own fit of sputtering coughs racking her tiny frame, one hand still grasping Trisana's staff.

Trisana was soaked, battered, fatigued, but overall relieved that the little gnome had been able to hold onto the staff and not let go. Lilam was stronger than she had first thought, and she was glad they had not been separated. What would she have done if they had been? Trisana shuddered from the thought, sending a fine shower of water droplets over her arms and hands.

"Are you alright, Lilam?" she asked, beginning to wring out the gown she had longed to wear for so long, and now, was sullied, drenched and torn. However, the state of her attire was the furthest thing from her mind at the moment.

Lilam opened her mouth, but instead of replying, removed a long, leafy strand of stranglekelp that had somehow lodged itself between her teeth and around her neck. She made a face, tossing the vegetation aside. "So that's what stranglekelp tastes like. Not as good as it looks. It tastes like murloc. At least when I tried Firebloom, I burned off all of my tastebumps on my tongue."

Wrinkling her nose, she began to unwind the stranglekelp coiled loosely around her neck. "Needs less strangle, and more kelp, I think." Freeing herself, Lilam then reached into her pocket, producing the shell she had stopped pick up earlier.

"I'm okey dokey. Look! I even managed to hold onto my lucky shell! And every lucky shell should have a lucky name. Now it has to reflect the shell's personality. Well, it's tan. And smooth. And... has little squiggly lines on it. I'll name it... Simon!"

Trisana merely sighed, trying to remove the tangles in her hair with her fingers. She froze when Lilam suddenly gasped, pointing at Trisana with a chubby finger.

"Wait a tinker tocking minute! I thought you were a moony elf! But... you're a no elf human... thing. But you have that eye sickness that the moony elves have. And those pointy bunny ears. You're not one of those transvesties I heard about that one time I was in that tavern and the cousin dwarf got mad at me because I didn't buy anything? You know, those transvesties who want to be something else but they're not, so they get 'em an operation."

"I always wanted to be a wisp. I tried getting one to bite me once, so that'd I turn into a wisp too. That didn't work out to well. It ran away and jumped into some moony elf lying in the middle of the road. Then he started yelling at me about 'wriggling my grubby gnome hands in his around in places they shouldn't be and how I touched him were no one should ever touch somebody else'. I think he was kinda' a pervert."

Trisana looked up from wringing out her dress, Lilam staring back with a childlike innocence. "Lilam... there could be a whole book written about you... and that still wouldn't be enough to understand what goes on in that head of yours" Trisana said, the beginnings of a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"No, I'm not a 'transvestie", as you call them. When I was very, very young, I feel into a moonwell. The magics from the pool altered me to look this way. If you go by the blood that flows through my veins, I suppose you would call me human. But in my heart, I'm a Kaldorei. Only, other people can't see in my heart like I can, so they label me as human. I only had one wish my whole life growing up with my parents; to become a druid like them. But now... it doesn't matter. Let's get going."

Trisana was about to stand, but the crook of her arm was suddenly grabbed. "That was a sad tale, child. Sadder than mine, even." The night elf that held her arm helped her to her feet, smiling melancholically at her. The man was cradling something oblong and while under his arm opposite of her.

"So what's your sad story moony elf man who snuck up on us when we weren't paying attention" Lilam inquired, trying to get a better look at what the man was holding. The elf glanced off towards the sea, his voice deep and tremulous as he began his tale.

"You both may call me Talen. You see, I was on my small vessel, skimming over the submerged ruins of Zoram, when naga attacked me, surging from the water and tearing at me with their claws! I fled, carrying what supplies I could to make this meager camp.

"But when I reached the shore and ran... my prized possession was lost. Luckily, a passing elf, about your age, spotted it and brought it to me. However, that is not the end of my tale. I fear the ancient statuette's secrets will remain forever hidden unless you find the key to its ancient lock.

"That key is a ring, the Ring of Zoram. It belonged to the rulers of this city before the waves of the Sundering drowned it. For years the ring was lost, but the naga have recently found it. Their leader, Ruuzel, dwells on an isle on the northern edge of Zoram. Please, both of you, retrieve the ring for me!"

----------------- 

_Note: Talen is a real NPC in WoW as well as his story. The quests that I "borrowed" and adapted into the story from him/WoW, would be "The Ancient Statuette" and the continuation of that quest, "Ruuzel". The "Ruuzel" quest is word for word and is property of World of Warcraft and Blizzard Entertainment. Just making sure I didn't get slapped with lawsuits or anything_, . _Also, Ruuzel is actually a female naga, but I changed her to male for the heck of it_.

----------------- 

Talen then removed the statuette he had tucked under his arm, and began stroking it like one would a furry animal, muttering to himself, "There is only one ring... one ring to rule them all! My preeeecious.. Mine preeeecious!" He started cackling, causing Lilam and Trisana to exchange looks.

Noticing that the two girls were eyeing him strangely, Talen glanced up quickly, hugging his possession to his chest. "What? You've never seen a man enjoy fine art before? This is Talen's precious! You go now! You find that ring and you bring it right back, you hear? One ring to rule them all! One ring to rule them all! Hehehehehe!"

"Uh, sure okay. We'll be leaving now, I guess" Trisana said quickly, grabbing Lilam's hand and beginning to drag her away. The gnome waved, finding the man's antics amusing. "Bye Tali!" Then to Trisana, she whispered surreptitiously, "I think he's a pervert too. Only a statue pervert."

"Okay, we're not talking to _any _more strangers. Ever. Besides, what are the odds that we'll even run into that Ruuzel naga anyway."

Lilam thought for a moment. "Using my gnome smarts about math and stuff... I'd say about one hundred percent plus a squee."

Trisana paused, dreading the question she was about to ask. "Lilam, what kind of number is 'one hundred percent plus a squee'?"

The warrior cleared her throat, speaking matter-of-factly. "Well, while we were walking and you were trying to get away from pervert Tali, I noticed eyes following us. And of course, they weren't just floating eyeball cookies like I had originally thought. No, they were snakey people hiding. As I'm speaking, they're coming out from everywhere. I feel that I'm wasting time telling you all of this, but it's best I tell you now before I forget. I hate when that happens."

Trisana whirled around, slinging Lilam around with her. Naga were slithering all over the ancient, dilapidated ruins scattered across the beach, all heading towards them. The girl began to fervently wish they were back with the murlocs.

"So, the way I see it, it's about one hundred percent likely we'll meet Ruuzie."

Trisana wanted to cry. From one life-threatening situation right into the arms of another. Could they ever get a break? "And... what's the squee?" she whispered, taking slow steps backwards although she knew it was useless to try and escape.

Lilam's hand went for her sword, pausing only to answer Trisana's question. "Oh yeah, I forgot" She cleared her throat once again, pointing a quivering finger at the approaching Naga.

"**WATER SNAKEY PEOPLE ARE COMING TO STEAL SIMON SHELL! SQUEEEE**!" Trisana let a sound escape her lips that was in between a sob and a bark of self-pitying laughter, cursing whatever higher power that saw it fit to make her life into this pitiful farce apparently only for it's own amusement. Her stomach began to feel strange again. Silently, she prayed it was only gas...

Their numbers seemed endless, the naga easily herding Lilam and Trisana into a tight semi circle with the sea at their backs and no way to escape. Lilam had never been face to face with a naga in her life, but she had heard enough stories to know they were no where near nice. This tim,e even the gnome felt the gravity of the situation. These were not murlocs, but murderous serpentine monsters perfectly capable of dragging them into the sea, never to be seen again.

A quick glance at Trisana was not very encouraging, the rosy hue of the girl's face fading into a sickly pallor. Lilam clenched her sword tightly in her hand, realizing she was still gripping the shell in the other. So much for it being lucky.

That's when Lilam spotted him. He was taller than all the other naga around him, more imposing with a certain arrogant swagger to his slither. His color was also different from his surrounding brethren, making him stand out quite gaudily. This naga was obviously the leader, making his way towards them in an unhurried way as he held his three-pronged trident high in the air.

There was something else about the naga that also caught the gnome's curious eyes. A ring glistening on his right hand. The naga could be no other than Ruuzel himself. Truthfully, Lilam didn't know what to make of the situation. Her everything-will-be-okay mentality was clashing with a sudden wave of anxiety about the seemingly hopeless situation. Knowing this, what she did next should not be that surprising.

She threw the shell. Straight at Ruuzel. It clonked him dead center in the forehead, the whole encroaching procession coming to a grinding halt. "Okay Trissy, Simon will buy us some time! Let's run into the sea! They'll never catch us, haha!"

"Lilam, how many times do we have to go through this?! THEY CAN SWIM!"

The warrior swirled the tip of her sword in the sand. "So... Simon's sacrifice was in vain? But he was so young! Maybe I should have thought that out a little bit better. I just made things worst, didn't I, Trissy?"

Before the girl could reply, a rhythmic, monotonous hissing bombarded their ears, the naga shaking their sleek, shimmering weapons towards the sky angrily while closing in the gap towards their helpless prey.

"Yes, I feel it's safe to assume you did. What were you thinking, Lilam?!"

"Nothing much, really. Warrioring is for warriors and thinking is for thinkers. And intelligent clouds. They're always watching us... just... watching..."

Ruuzel had picked up the discarded shell, holding it tight in his hands as he approached, towering above both females, baring sharp, porcelain colored teeth at the pair. The hissing lowered in pitch to a soft, throaty hum, Ruuzel staring down at Lilam with a haughty glare. His vivid, red tongue darted into the air mockingly as he began hissing zealously at the gnome, causing her to raise a confused eyebrow.

"I think... his tongue is broken. It's stuck on 's'. That or he's telling me to be quiet over and over and over."

Trisana didn't reply, but Ruuzel did pause, blinking slowly at the clueless gnome. He turned his piercing gaze on Trisana, the girl's heart skipping a couple beats in a row.

"Yousss, human. No, notsss all human. Sssssomething more... yousss undersssstand thissss, yesss?" he said carefully in Darnassian. The language of the Kaldorei was Trisana's native tongue. Unfortunately, Trisana couldn't find said tongue. Instead, she nodded, swallowing what felt like her lungs back down. At least they hadn't been speared and gutted. Yet.

"That hairlesssss worm bessside yousss hasss challenged me. Let it knowsss that I acceptssss. It issss a battle to the deathsss."

This was not good. This was very not good.

"Lilam!" Trisana shouted in a mixture of anger and panic, trying to collect her thoughts yet remain sane at the same time, but unfortunately, it wasn't working.

"What? What'd he say? Did he say something nice about me? Tell him his big fork is nice. Ask him where he got it! I could slay, like twelve bears with a fork that big!"

"No, Lilam, listen. I think when you threw that shell, though I don't know what would possess you to do such a thing, you challenged Ruuzel to a fight in his eyes. A fight to the death!"

Lilam nodded somewhat hesitantly. "Okay... a fight to who's death? I hope it's not Simon... he's too young to die!"

"Not Simon, Lilam. Yours."

"... Hmm. Now are you absolutively positive that he said 'death'? I coulda' sworn I heard him say I 'invited' him to a 'party' to the death. Yup, party 'til you drop... dead. Party favors are coffins and tombstones. We could even play the 'Let's Live A Few More Hundred Years" game! Everyone always wins! Except Niecy. Mechanostriders are _not_ impact resistant. Who knew the things couldn't fly... after a running leap offa' the top of Mount Ironforge. Maybe she just had an outdated model..."

Looking at the twitching expression frozen on Trisana's face, Lilam waved an reassuring hand, shrugging off her backpack as she insisted, "It'll be fine, Trissy! I've got it all under control. It's time to pull out the heavy artillery now!"

The gnome quickly reached inside her pack, retrieving a small, lumpy object wrapped in her spare cloak. "Oh, you're in big, super hujungo trouble now, Ruuzie" Lilam said with a strange cackle, grinning crookedly at the sea of reptilian faces surrounding her as she held the covered object high in the air for all eyes to see.

With a loud, unnecessary "Ta da!", the twinkle-eyed gnome removed the cloak. And revealed a mechanical squirrel. A fast, measured hissing escaped from the naga, sounding suspiciously like laughter. Ruuzel was not among them. His trident struck the coarse sand, ending the snickering abruptly. Then, he leveled the weapon at Lilam, jerking his head towards her sword that she had sheathed at her side.

Lilam merely stepped closer with the squirrel. Ruuzel's tail snapped dangerously in the air, whipping about in a rage of it's own. Trisana could tell that this was not going to end well.

"Lilam! What are you doing, are you insane?!"

"Trissy... don't you trust me?"

The girl's mouth shut at this inquiry. Lilam wasn't looking at her, but the tone of her voice made her echo the question in her own mind. Do_I trust her?_ Trisana looked at the scores of naga, all awaiting the orders of their leader. Then she looked at the gnome... holding the squirrel aloft as if it were some mechanical messiah.

The same gnome that had saved her life before she even knew her name... who was trying to save her now, even when anyone else would have given up and accepted the grim fate that was sure to come. Her moonshine eyes brimmed with milky tears, but she managed to stave them off, a faint, half-smile upturning the corners of her mouth.

"Yes, Lilam... I trust you."

"Great, now trust in the squirrel."

Winking cheekily at Ruuzel, Lilam patted the squirrel on the head. "Here's a little taste of gnomish engineering, Ruuzie. Much better than goblin, I might add. Fear the squirrel and pray to your fishy gods that he has mercy on your fillets."

Ruuzel lurched forward at the gnome, just as she held the squirrel close to her ear. "What's that, Squiget? You say today's going to be cloudy... with a chance of crazy random lightning!"

And at this, she flipped on the squirrel's switch. And tossed him to Ruuzel. Lilam tackled Trisana to the ground, just before a blinding flash of light sparked across the beach followed by the crackle of electricity and howls of pain.

When the pair looked back, Trisana was dumbstruck, although Lilam merely nodded with satisfaction. Ruuzel's prone figure was spread out on the ground, smoldering in the slightly blackened sand along with four other bodies. The squirrel sat before the fallen naga, mindlessly oblivious to anything, still sparking with jagged tendrils of electricity dancing about his body.

"Haha! I knew that would happen. I skipped a step when I made Squiget, so he malfunctions sometimes, especially when he gets wet and you turn him on. Glad I gave up engineering! I think-- Hey... no, Squiget keep away! I know that look in your eyes, stay away from me!"

As it was programmed to do, the small creature began to shuffle off after his master. Lilam. However, the gnome knew better to let him near before the water worked its ways out of his gears and stopped his sparking.

So, she ran. Into the crowd of naga. "Hwaaaa! He's gonna light me up like an ornament at Winter Veil!" The naga scattered, having seen up close and personal what had happened to their leader. Although, few were lucky enough to dodge out of the way of the wailing gnome and electrified squirrel.

It was when Lilam tried to run out into the sea, when Trisana had to step in, grabbing the gnome by her cloak before she could set foot in the water.

"Lilam! Stop before he really _does _light you up like an ornament!"

"I can make it to the water! He can't swim! At least I don't think he can... I'm willing to find out!"

"Lilam, he's not sparking anymore. It's okay. We're... safe." Trisana released the gnome's cloak as Lilam glanced back at Squiget to confirm that her words were true. Seeing that there was no longer electricity running along the length of the creature, Lilam bent down before it, poking him on the nose. In which she was promptly shocked.

Lilam yelped, and sat back hard on her bottom, sticking her stinging finger in her mouth as she muttered irritably, "Oh, very cute, Squiget. No lug nuts for you, Mr. Smarty Squirrel."

"C'mon Lilam, we should leave before they regroup or something", Trisana said anxiously, hauling her companion up. The warrior nodded, but proceeded to run up to Ruuzel's motionless body instead. Trisana jogged up after her just as Lilam rose from bending over his arm for a moment.

"Look, Trissy! I'm betrothed!"

The ring that had once been on the naga's hand was now on Lilam's pudgy finger.

"Isn't that the ring Talen wanted?"

Lilam glanced at the ring, then back at Trisana. "Finders keepers. Besides, I don't want him to get his pervert germs all on it. I think I'll leave it with Ruuzel. He might meet the woman water snakey of his fishy dreams someday and need it."

Lilam tried to remove the jewelry from her finger, but after several unsuccessful attempts, she gave Trisana the "I know I'm in trouble" face. "Trissy... the ring won't come off." Trisana sighed, grasping Lilam's hand and beginning to drag her away.

"We don't have time for this now, Lilam. We'll get it off later. Right now, we need to disappear, and fast."

Lilam raised her hand. "I know a short cut!" Trisana lifted an eyebrow skeptically.

"What? I thought you said you trusted me..."

"Of course. Lead on, my friend."

"Can I lead with my eyes closed?"

"I don't think so."

"But I thought you--"

"I trust you enough to know you won't finish that sentence."

Lilam opened her mouth... then shut it, suddenly hit with a realization. "OH MY SPARKS! WE LEFT SIMON! Simon's a POG! A 'prisoner of gravity'! He can't walk! Poor Simon... I'll never forget him..."

"... Can I also trust you never to speak of 'Simon' again? Ever?"

"Simon says to go on without him. And to hop on one foot. He likes telling people what to do."

"..."

* * *

"Lilam, I'm not doubting you or anything... but are you certain we"re going the right way?" Lilam stopped skipping and swinging her arms. "No, I got lost a long time ago."

Trisana stopped too, sighing until there was no longer any air in her lungs. "And when were you going to tell me this?" Lilam dug the toe of her boot into the ground.

"When you asked. But don't worry, Ashenvale's pretty safe once you get past the water snakey people. Just a bunch of deer... And some wolves. And a few bears. And banshees—"

"Okay, I think I get the point. Let's just keep moving." Trisana started forward again, Lilam nodding in agreement as she trailed behind her. By this time, the pair were off the well traveled, visible road, lead astray by Lilam's shortcut. "Hey look! A party!" Lilam suddenly exclaimed excitedly, pointing ahead eagerly.

Trisana followed the gnome's gaze. Indeed, not too far off there was a large gathering of people. "Let's go ask them for directions!"

The gnome sped off past the suspicious Trisana who chased fearfully after her. However, Lilam did slow to a swift jog upon closer inspection of the "partiers".

"Why are those moony elves red? And those cousin dwarves... their faces are gray. Maybe they ate too much and it made them sick? And there are trollies down there too. I didn't know moony elves even came in red. I bet they smell like berries... or jam. Or they could just be very, very angry... "

Without warning, Trisana tackled Lilam, dragging her behind a large boulder just before the gathering of strange people. "Trissy, I don't think that's how you follow the leader... That's _not_ what the 'fall' in 'follow' means..."

Trisana put a hand over the gnome's mouth, holding a finger to her own lips. "Shh! Lilam, those aren't exactly night elves and Ironforge dwarves. Those are blood elves and dark iron dwarves."

Trisana saw the realization in Lilam's eyes and she removed her hand, albeit a little cautiously. "So... we're not invited to their party? What if I bring my luck pot? That's what you do at parties, right? Eat from the luck pot?" the warrior whispered, mimicking Trisana's hushed tone.

"One, it's 'potluck', Lilam and two, we're not exactly on friendly terms with those people. We should just turn around and—"

Lilam interrupted, slamming a fist into her palm as a thought struck her. "I remember now! When I was in Darkshore awhile ago, I heard some moony elves talkin' about some people who did bad things around here. I think they were part of some group called the Bark Hand or Lark Land... something. And that they're a bunch of cannonballs."

Trisana waited for Lilam to explain, but the gnome was silent. "…And what exactly is a 'cannonball'?" she asked, having no earthly idea what the little warrior was talking about.

"You know, they cook people up and eat them. Cannonballs" Lilam replied as if it should have been common knowledge to the girl.

"Oh... you mean _cannibals_."

The gnome sighed exasperatley. "That's what I said! Cannonballs!"

"Oh, we're not cannibals, but we can do plenty things that would make you wish we were."

Trisana and Lilam spun around. A tall, darkly robed blood elf hovered over them, sneering down at them with glowing, sickly yellow eyes.

"And for future reference, we're called the Dark Strand, gnome. Not that it matters much now. Your screaming souls shall echo endlessly in the abysmal void of the Twisting Nether once I'm done with you."

Lilam raised her hand. "Can"t our souls just do a happy, laughing dance in the sugary sweet, huggable land of the Slightly Bent Nether? Or the Twisting Pretzel, either is good."

The elf didn't get a chance to comprehend the gnome's statement or reply, because in that momentary hesitation, Trisana made her move. With all the strength she could muster, she brought her staff down upon the man's cranium with a sickening crack.

The Cultist fell without a word, plopping softly onto the ground in a cloud of dirt. Lilam looked at Trisana with surprise written plainly on her face.

"Trissy… way to go! I mean, I woulda' just hacked him into little itty bitty pieces, but smashing him on the head is good too! You opened a whoop butt of can all over him, yup!"

Trisana sat down hard, her hands still shaking. She smiled weakly at Lilam, replying, "Yeah… I guess I did."

The girl stared at her trembling hands, willing them to be still. She didn't know what came over her, only that she had leapt up and struck the man without thinking. It wasn't a good feeling.

Lilam pranced over to the prone figure of the warlock on the ground, jeering tauntingly, "Haha! The Dark Strand is a dumb name anyway. It sounds like a tailor's shop that sells… dark strands. And no cannonball actually says they're a cannonball. How'd they get anybody to eat if they tell everybody they're gonna' eat them?"

A light caught Lilam's eye, winking enticingly from the elf's open palm. Unable to stave off the wave of curiousity, without thinking, Lilam reached out and picked up the gleaming object. It was a jewel, stained a deep ruby red that seemed to pulsate in her hand.

"Hey look, Trissy. What do you think this is?"

Trisana glanced up to see the warrior scrutinizing the gem. She shrugged, rising to unbalanced feet as she replied distractedly, "I don't know, but you should put it down before something else happ—"

The last of her sentence was abruptly cut off. The gem exploded with an unearthly light, blinding the pair. Lilam let out a cry of surprise as the jewel suddenly floated from her grasp, hovering just above her palm before gliding to the ring on Lilam's finger and producing yet another bright beam of light that lit up the sky in scarlet flames and hues. When this magnificent display subsided, Lilam lifted her hand apprehensively.

The ring and the gem had reacted upon each other, it seemed and had fused together to become one entity. The gem on the ring was now crystalline, soft, ruby swirls twirling in a chaotic dance within the iridescent oval. Trisana's eyes, which had been transfixed on the gem's transformation, now drifted back behind the pair. Every Dark Strand eye was upon them. Or rather, upon Lilam and the ring.

"Lilam... you ever try and you know... not get yourself into trouble?"

Lilam followed Trisana's gaze. And sighed. "I did once… and now I can never go back to that Inn every again, no sir. They said I'm **(1)** KOS now. I wish I knew what that meant. Maybe I should go back and ask 'em…"

Trisana yanked Lilam after her as she ran by, not even bothering to look behind. What was the point? The Cultists said nothing, merely chasing after the gnome and the ring that contained the gem that was the very essence of their power. They would not let her escape.

"Outta' one furnace and into another! I think I know what bread feels like now..." Lilam began hitting herself on the forehead with a chubby fist. "I just wish they'd all stop chasing us!"

"Yeah... wishful thinking. Now hush and run faster!" Trisana dragged the babbling gnome along, unaware of the phenomena occurring behind them. Every single last one of the Cultist had stopped. Dead in their tracks. At the same time.

Had Lilam not been beating herself up (quite literally) she would have noticed the ring flash twice at her wish. And she might have also seen the glowing, golden eyes that had been witness to the whole scene and was now eyeing the ring in avaricious glee...

-----------------  
_Index_: **(1) **KOS - Kill On Sight  
-----------------

"Look! A sign! I"ma go read it." Lilam ran ahead of Trisana, standing on tippy toes to try and decipher the road sign that towered several inches above her.

"What does it say?" Trisana inquired, coming to a stop behind the squinting gnome.

"It says... 'You must be this tall to read this sign. This means all gnomes must wander around aimlessly and figure out where they're going by asking nearby woodland creatures, particularly of the Horde persuasion'"

Trisana first gaped at the warrior, then peered at the sign. It read _Maestra's Post_. "Lilam... that wasn't even close."

Lilam shrugged. "That's what my father always says when _he _reads a sign. I thought that's what they all said." Trisana hid a smile, and nodded for them to continue.

It did not take the pair long to make out the tall, stark tower that loomed in the distance, almost beckoning them forward, to pick up their pace and quicken their steps. It was their halfway point to Astranaar. "Astranaar, Astranaar! It ain't that far, it ain't that far!" Lilam cheered excitedly, skipping with the tinny metal clanking of her mail ensemble.

An almost wistful smile briefly touched Trisana's features until something further up the road made her features fall. "Off the road!" Trisana hissed urgently, snatching Lilam by her shoulder and half-dragging, half-leading her off to the side.

"What is it? Bears?!" the gnome squeaked, panic rising in her already high-pitched voice. Trisana shook her head, crouching below some brush so that she was not visible to anyone that happened to pass by.

"No... Sentinels." Lilam followed the human's gaze. Sure enough, a handful of distinctly dressed women on decorated mounts were loitering around the road, adjacent to the Post. There was no way around. Lilam pursed her lips together, then tugged at Trisana's sleeve.

"Okay, here's what we'll do. We'll--"

"No. It won't work."

"But... I didn't even say what my plan was yet!"

"Trust me, Lilam... you don't need to finish." Trisana slouched to the ground with a heavy sigh. It was a sheer, almost vertical climb to the left of the Sentinels. And they'd surely be spotted if they took the practically coverless right side, not to mention the savage beasts that were roaming about. Trisana sighed again.

"Don't worry… we'll wait 'em out." Lilam said comfortingly, offering an encouraging smile.

"Well, this is a rotten place to do that."

Lilam and Trisana jumped at the new voice that had entered the conversation. A lone, female Night Elf stepped out from behind a tree off to their left. "The Sentinels will be there awhile, I'm afraid. That is, unless I give them a reason to be on their way" the woman added, smiling unthreateningly.

Her smile was kind, her features soft and feminine in a quiet, motherly way. Trisana was immediately put at ease, feeling her muscles uncoil and relax on their own. "You are more than welcome to come and stay with me for a spell" the woman continued, gesturing to the tower in the distance.

Trisana nodded, beginning to rise, but Lilam was not so easily convinced. "How do we know that you aren't gonna' tell those Sentumnolls on us?"

The woman chuckled softly. "I've got cake, if you both would like some."

Lilam's eyes lit up hungrily. "C'mon, Trissy! What are you waiting for, let's _go_!" she exclaimed, tugging at the girl's hand. Trisana shook her head, not sure whether she should be worried at how easily the gnome was won over.

Falling in step beside the mysterious woman, Lilam grinned up at her goofily. "So, tell me more about this cake..."

* * *

"You know, you didn't have to hit that guy like that, 'Shar. It was completely unnecessary and out of line. You're a bully."

Anishar snorted, both at his companion and in an attempt to expel the rest of the sea water from his nasal cavities. "I crawled onto the beach looking like a beached thresher... What in the two moons would possess him to ask me to find some dumb ring for him? I was still coughing up water! That's why in turn, I asked how he'd like to find his teeth."

"But you really didn't have to beat him with his own statue. That was... kinda' harsh in a psychotic sorta' way" the hunter pointed out, wringing dark water out of his jerkin.

Anishar shrugged, pushing a wet lock of hair from his face. "I wasn't going to. But that whole 'precious' bit... it just made me want to hit him. Repeatedly. Dad always said do what feels right. So I went with my first instinct and beat him until he wasn't making sense anymore... I think he's back there mumbling 'My breakfast'..."

It was silent for a moment, Falerian pausing from futilely trying to drain the sea from his drenched clothing. "So... how do you think we survived?"

Anishar frowned, giving him a peevish look. "Because, you idiot, we're the villains. The villains _never_ die this early on."

Falerian nodded in agreement. "That, and the readers would probably stop reading the story, riot and hang the author from a burning tree if she killed us off now. As perfect character foils, we compliment each other in such a charismatic way that it makes us an instant fan favorite. That and I'm so huggably innocent it makes all the giggly fangirls and fanboys go, 'Awww...'"

Anishar stopped. He took Falerian by the shoulders, taking deep, soothing breaths before asking, calmly, "What. Are. You. Talking. About."

The rogue gave Falerian a jaw jarring shake. Falerian blinked. "I... don't know. It was like... someone had control of my mouth. Like... some omnificent presence, that smelled mysteriously of cucumber melon and warm, fresh baked cookies, suddenly had control of every aspect of my life. I was... a mere tool for her enjoyment. I feel violated. The last thing I can remember is a feminine voice whispering softly in my ear, _'Shadowmeld is cheap! Nerf!_' and fading away into sweet, sane nothingness..."

Anishar released the hunter as he pushed away from him, scowling irritably in confusion. "Why is it always like we're speaking two entirely different languages and yours is the stupider of the two?"

His companion paused to consider this. "You know, nobody makes fresh baked, homemade cookies anymore. Everyone's too busy, nowadays. If there was a way that we could, oh I don't know, have a couple elves bake up batches of cookies over in Teldrassil and then we sell them for profit, I bet we'd make a whole lot of money. I even thought of a name for our cookie enterprise. Keebler. Has a nice, Kaldorei ring to it."

The rogue slapped him in the back of the head unmercifully. "Just shutup. That's the most idiotic, and imbecilic thing I've ever heard. No one would buy cookies from a bunch of elves who live in trees, for Elune's sake."

Anishar smacked him in the head again, for good measure. Falerian rubbed the back of his head pensively, avoiding eye contact with the aggravated rogue. Instead, his eyes fell upon the corpses of Naga strewn across the beach.

"Wild party?"

"Didn't I tell you to shut up?"

"You didn't say please..."

Before Anishar could wrap his hands around Falerian's neck, Petunia began squealing, her large nostrils flaring wildly. Falerian gave the boar a side glance, then gazed off into the distance, beyond the Zoram Strand.

"That girl and the gnome... they went that way. They're heading for Astranaar."

A cold, metallic glint appeared in Anishar's eyes as he smiled thinly. "Astranaar... that is where we'll have our chance. They won't escape this time."

Falerian clapped loudly. "Ooo, very villainish! Now it's my turn. Astranaar... _that _is where we'll... git 'r dun!"

"Why couldn't you have just drowned..."

"Because... I have thumbs, silly."

"Not for long..." Anishar growled. With a shrill whistle, he called for his night saber as Falerian followed suit and did the same. Off in the distance, angry, ominous clouds were forming over Astranaar, foretelling of a storm swiftly approaching. Indeed a storm was brewing, but not necessarily the one taking place amongst the heavens. And Astranaar was its unwitting destination.

* * *

"I am Liladris Moonriver. Welcome to my home."

Lilam looked up from her plate to excitedly begin to say something that was unintelligible coming from a mouth stuffed full of cake, her cheeks practically splitting down the middle. All she really managed to do was shoot a fine spray of crumbs across the table, then cover her mouth quickly before the bulk of the soggy mess in her mouth came after.

Trisana sat amazed at the tiny warrior's voracious hunger (and horrid table manners), taking a dainty bite from her own slice of cake. "I believe what Lilam was... uh, trying to say was thank you for your hospitality. Our gratitude is beyond words."

The girl was silent a moment, her eyes roaming the small yet cozy room high above the Ashenvale forests below. "You won't get into any trouble harboring... fugitives like us, will you? If the Sentinels were to find us here..."

Liladris, who had been gazing out the window turned to face the soft spoken girl, the child's concern etched clearly on her youthful face. The woman smiled softly, gliding across the room to take a seat at the table next to Lilam.

"There is no need to fret, young one. You are safe here, I guarantee that. This is my Post, therefore, it is under my command. If I have not reported anything, then the Sentinels will leave me about my own business."

The woman paused to watch Lilam attack her plate with uncanny gusto, causing her to chuckle under her breath. "And I cannot conceive how anyone, Sentinels included, could accuse the two of you of some sort of misdeed. Well... maybe our little gnome friend. She looks like she could cause a heap full of trouble. But I know for a fact that Trisana is innocent of any crimes, no matter what those uptight sister Sentinels of ours say."

Trisana was a little taken aback by the woman's words and how she had seemingly known that she had done no wrong without her even pleading her innocence. "How... how do you know all that?" Trisana whispered, not knowing why she felt the need to inquire in a hushed tone.

The woman smiled again. Or perhaps it was the same smile, one that never strayed too far from her features. It was a smile that started in her eyes, making them illuminate with an even brighter glow that seemed to work it's way and spread a warm mirth across the rest of her face. It reminded Trisana of her mother's smile. That thought made Trisana's breath catch in her throat, but she fought down the sob that was crawling its way up her esophagus.

Liladris did not reply immediately. Instead, she reached out with long, elegant fingers and pushed back Trisana's hood. The girl raised her eyes to meet Liladris'. They looked just like hers, a mirror image.

"Because, young one, the winds, the trees and earth told me so. Our kind should not be hunting one another. We have too many enemies for that. You are kin and deserve to be treated as such."

Trisana shook her head. "But I'm not--"

The woman took the girl's hands in her own, interrupting her. "You are kin. The winds, trees and earth do not lie. Perhaps not in entirely in physical appearance, but you are Kal'dorei in heart and spirit. And that is what I see. That is what Elune sees."

Trisana choked back a sob of overwhelming emotions just as Lilam choked on a half chewed glob of cake. Liladris patted the over eager gnome's back, chiding her gently about eating too much, too fast.

Lilam nodded and proceeded to stuff the last bit of the sugary confection in her mouth before excusing herself from the table with a nod of her head and a barrage of crumbs. The contented gnome, now happy that she was stuffed with cake, bounded towards a bookshelf near the window, poking at the book ends curiously.

"Won't you come with us?" Trisana suddenly blurted out, her eyes pleading with Liladris. "We're just children! We can't make it to Feralas by ourselves! Much less with Sentinels and other enemies chasing us so closely. We need help... please."

The smile on the woman's face faltered as she shook her head forlornly. "I'm afraid I cannot. This is my home here, as well as my binding obligation that I swore my life to. Maestra's Post is mine to look after, to keep the forces that would do harm to these lands and the people inhabiting them at bay. To always be alert and on the watch for danger, from whatever direction it may come. I will protect this Post with my life."

Trisana's face fell, her body resigning disappointedly into a defeated slouch in her seat. Liladris began wrapping the rest of the cake slices in leathery cheese cloth. "However, you have little to fret over, young one. I know your journey may seem daunting and your goal unattainable, but you are strong. You have countless Kal'dorei spirits to help guide you. And, not to mention an eager young warrior by your side. You are not quite so alone as you think. Darkness may be gathering around you, but Elune's light shall illuminate your path."

Lilam paused from her exploring to make one comment. "Well, I hope this Elune has a lot of candles. We have a looooonng way to go and if she's going to light up Trissy's path, I figure she won't mind me using a bit of that light too."

Liladris blinked at first, then laughed bemusedly. "I'm sure she won't mind, little one. I'm quite certain of that..."

Lilam wrinkled her nose at the woman, wondering why she had suddenly laughed, but shrugged it off. Night Elves were strange, strange people. Instead, Lilam amused herself by taking a quick peek out the window. Had she looked only a moment sooner, she would have seen two Night Elves, a stone faced rogue and a hunter with a boar running at his side, pass by on large feline mounts heading for Astranaar...

* * *

Trisana awoke to being softly shaken into consciousness, Liladris hovering above her with a face glowing with maternal warmth. "Trisana... it's time to go." The girl yawned with the wide stretch of her jaw, tears welling up at the corners of her eyes. The woman smiled at her as Trisana rubbed her face, not asking whether the tears were a product of the yawn or something more.

Instead, she turned to gently nudge Lilam, who had fallen asleep in an armchair at least three times her size. "Mmm hmm, shake your booties..." the tiny warrior mumbled, resisting the encroaching wave of consciousness as she turned onto her side with a sigh.

Liladris stole a glance at Trisana. "It's a long story" the girl replied with a lopsided grin, attempting to smooth the seemingly permanently creased wrinkles in her gown. "I'd like to hear it someday"

Once Lilam was finally roused from her slumber, the trio scaled the winding ramp down the tower, their footsteps echoing in an endless round up into the spacious raptors. When the finally reached the bottom, Liladris handed the pair their packs, now filled with food for their journey.

"I want the two of you to be careful" Liladris instructed with a knowing smile. "Especially you, Trisana. I fear that the winds are conspiring against you, but do not fret. The noble, protecting earth shall protect you. May Elune illuminate your path and Cenarius guide your steps."

Then, the woman turned her gaze on Lilam. "And you, young warrior. I know you will do your best to protect Trisana. Try not to eat all that cake I gave you in one sitting and try not to get into any trouble."

Lilam wrinkled her nose. "It's not getting _into _trouble that I'm worried about. It's the getting _out _of trouble part that's seems to be Lilam-proof."

The woman chuckled, and ruffled the gnome's curls playfully. "Take care of each other, you two. Farewell!" Lilam and Trisana waved as they departed from Maestra's Post, Liladris continuing to wait until the duo disappeared over the hill and out of sight.

While Lilam prattled on and on about how she was planning on eating every slice of cake in one sitting and the subsequent sickness that was to follow, Trisana remained silent, lost in her own thoughts. Lilam didn't mind; it wasn't like she really needed another person to have a conversation with. She was perfectly capable of carrying on a dialogue with her self.

It was not long before the elven city of Astranaar crested over the horizon, causing Lilam to point excitedly. "Looky, Trissy! That's Astranaar, yup it is!"

Of course, Trisana had already noticed the city fast approaching, but humored the excited gnome with a nod. Lilam took this as encouragement and immediately burst into song as she skipped along the gravel path. "Astranaar, it ain't that far! Astranaar, it ain't that fa-"

Her vocal catastrophe was suddenly cut short as her song transformed into a strangled squeal. A purple blur was all Trisana could make out of what came speeding out from the woods off to the right and snatched Lilam up, leaving her open mouthed and frozen in place. "Lilam!"

The lavender feline slowed to a stop on the other side of the path at Trisana's shout, glowering at the girl with its yellow, misty eyes, with Lilam swinging precariously in it's jowls. There was a soft _poof _and the distinct scent of magic in the air as the cat transformed into a Night Elf amidst a cloud of green smoke. Lilam struggled in the woman's grasp, her legs kicking futilely in midair.

"I've finally found you... Trisana."

The girl couldn't believe her eyes, utter surprise robbing her muscles of function and strength. "Ell... Ellisah?!"

The grin on Ellisah's face was hardly that of a warm welcome. "I've finally caught up to you, Trisana." Overwhelmed with a sudden head rush of curiosity, Lilam stopped in mid-squirm, looking back and forth between Trisana and Ellisah with round, inquisitive eyes.

Trisana gaped at her sister, countless emotions cycling within her, swept up and tossed about in a truculent torrent. "Ellisah... you don't know how glad I am to see you! Mother, father and I went home and then Lanrith--"

Trisana's elated outburst was choked off as the druid's grip on Lilam's collar tightened. Lilam squeaked in surprise, assuming she would be let down, considering the manner in which Trisana had greeted the woman.

"Hey! I'd like to keep my head attached to my body, if you don't mind", Lilam cried out with a scowl, "I don't think either will work right if they're separated."

Trisana stood completely still, blinking blankly at her adopted sibling.

"Ellisah... you're hurting her! Stop it, right now!"

The druid turned her gaze from her captive and rested it upon Trisana. "Ignorant child. That is the whole point."

Trisana's grip on her staff tightened, the color quickly draining from her face and knuckles. "But why? I thought... I thought you came to help me! We're family, what about mother and fa--"

"Do not ever make the mistake of calling us family again," Ellisah hissed, her eyes narrowing dramatically. "You are a criminal, having committed a grievous crime against the Circle. I have come to ensure that you are properly punished, by orders of the Archdruid himself."

Trisana reeled back, her entire face stinging as if she had been dealt a physical blow. _I knew Ellisah never liked me... but... how could she do this? How... ?_ The trembling girl fought back tears that threatened to overpower the dam she had built just behind her eyes. "Why Ellisah?! I haven't done anything wrong! You know me, help me tell them it was all a mistake! Please, Ellisah!"

"And while you're at it, how about you let go of the gnome? It'd be much easier for you to talk without your hands being full", Lilam interjected, prying at the woman's iron grip.

Ignoring Lilam, Ellisah laughed a cruel and bitter laugh, her eyes burning maliciously into Trisana's own. "Why? You're an aberration to nature, an abomination. And now, on top of that, you've transgressed against _my _people. You are the only mistake here, Trisana."

The druid watched her words take their effect on the girl's visage, taking wicked glee in the result. Her free hand went to her belt, removing her dagger from it's sheath. She pointed the blade at Lilam, who stopped wiggling to blink at the weapon.

"And you, gnome, are just as guilty for being her willing accomplice. Tell me, how does it feel to be inches from your own demise?" Ellisah said with a bemused sneer.

Apparently, she had no idea who she was talking to. "Why don't _you _tell _me _how you managed to take ugly to a whole new level? You might want to try pointing that kitchen fork in the opposite direction. If anything will kill me, it'll be that ugly mole on your chin with the face of its own trying to gobble me up whole" Lilam jeered, staring up at the woman challengingly.

Ellisah growled, jerking the dagger close to the warrior's face. "Hold your tongue, gnome, or I'll cut it out and _make _you hold it."

Lilam's immediate response was to stick her tongue out mockingly and defiantly reply, "You don't scare me, ugly hag. I don't need a tongue to raise my sword and chop you down to my size!.. However, I _would _need a tongue to sing. Or not. I mean, I could make sounds... I think. Hmm, I wonder..."

"Lilam! Ellisah, let her go! She has nothing to do with this!"

The gnome's eyes darted to the shouting girl. Waving a dismissing hand, she said, "Shhh! Trissy, I'm pondering if I can actually sing or make sounds without a tongue. I can't think with you screaming. Smeeze, you act like someone's dying or something."

Disregarding Lilam's words, Trisana started forward, not sure what she was going to do, but Lilam was an innocent victim in this. She couldn't let Ellisah harm even one hair on the quirky gnome's head.

Ellisah didn't move, but instead pursed her lips together and whistled, long and shrill. The forest came alive as the Sentinels that had been hidden from view of the road swarmed from their concealment, two of the female warriors rushing forward and grabbing Trisana before she took another step.

This did not sit well with Lilam. "Hey you ugly witch, let me down before I'm forced to do something so warriortastic, it'll shock the ugly right off your wrinkly leather face, old baghag!"

For the moment, Ellisah ignored the gnome's insults, merely tightening her grip to silence her prattling. "This one insists on resisting being taken into our custody", the druid said, nodding her head at the struggling gnome. "I have tried to reason with the creature, but she will not come quietly. If I let her down, she will attack. If I rend her unconscious, she will surely follow."

Ellisah turned her steely gaze upon Lilam, the hatred in her eyes permeating from her very soul so deep, it was almost visible. "That leaves only one option. She must die so that I may carry out the Archdruid's orders."

"NO!" Trisana bellowed, lurching forward but held fast by her captors. She began struggling against the warrior women, fear for Lilam's life filling her with an unknown strength. "If you harm her in any way, I'll... I'll..."

"You'll what?" Ellisah barked in laughter, giving Lilam a violent shake. Trisana's face had turned bright red, and as much as she wanted to say something, anything to her sister... she remained silent. There was nothing she could do.

"That is what I thought. Know your place and stay there, Trisana, lest I have to forcibly keep you there." _... And I invite you to give me that satisfaction,_ the druid thought to herself. _As soon as I dispose of this disgusting gnome... you are next, foolish child..._

Her private thoughts were interrupted as something damp splattered upon her cheek and sent a fine spray into her right eye. Shocked and thoroughly repulsed, Ellisah could only stare for a moment at the rebellious gnome who grinned up at her handiwork.

The druid felt something snap in her jaw as she snarled, wiping off the saliva with the back of her dagger hand. In a petty, angry jerk of her hand the woman brought the dagger across the warrior's cheek, drawing a thin line across the flesh that instantly reddened and stained the dimpled skin in tiny rivulets.

Lilam winced, but managed a crooked half-grin. "Even with this, my face still isn't half as ugly as yours. And you call that butter knife a weapon? Get a real sword, otherwise, you're just buttering toast."

This was enough to decimate Ellisah's normally calm and cool demeanor. "Damn you warriors! You, Lanrith...damn you all!" Blinded by an uncontrollable rage, the druid raised her dagger in the air, tightening her grip maddeningly and aimed for Lilam's vulnerable neck. In her last encounter with a stubborn warrior, she had merely taken an ear. This time, she wanted to take a life...

* * *

_BANG! _

The unexpected shot rang out across the forest, pealing painfully loud in sensitive ears. Ellisah's dagger was ripped from her hand, the bullet sending it spinning to the ground. The druid cursed loudly in her native tongue in surprise as her hold on the gnome faltered. Lilam cried out as she landed hard upon the rock strewn road, able to breath easy now that the druid's vice grip were no longer making the process of respiration difficult.

"Heeeerrrreee's Fali!" Falerian exclaimed with a sloppy grin, stepping out of the underbrush with Petunia snorting softly at his side. "As much as I approve and would like to participate in the stabbing of Gnomes, I'm going to have to ask you to step away from Gnome and put your hands where I can see them. Preferably wrapped around me in a loving embrace. I like cuddling and you, my dear, look like a cuddler."

"Who in the nine hells are you?!" Ellisah spat, her hand still tingling from having her dagger shot out of her hand.

"I'll be anyone you want, baby. How about you turn into that cat again and show me what those claws can really do? Call me a hopeless romantic, but that's how I like my women; feral and prone to outbursts of violence and rage. Finally, someone I can bring home to mom."

Ellisah's face darkened a whole shade deeper before she replied, speaking to the Sentinels who were silently awaiting her order. "Stop standing there with your mouths open and cut him down! However, leave his head attached to his body. I'd like to rip out his jugular with my own two hands and personally crush his voice box into dust."

Falerian pouted in mock sadness. "Does this mean I can forget the honeymoon in Blackrock Mountain? Those Dark Iron Dwarves have plenty of organs that we could stab and blast out together as a couple. We could even maim some helpless gnome child on the way there! Murder and senseless violence are the best aphrodisiacs after all."

The hunter laughed at this, purring at her mockingly as he swiped a "claw" in the air playfully. The druid opened her mouth to blurt the most vile, vulgar words she could think of, but was stopped by a sudden shift in the air.

The Sentinel to Trisana's left unexpectedly became very limp, slumping into an ackward position and swaying uneasily on her feet, releasing the girl in the process. The Sentinel on her right opened her mouth to question the woman, but instead, only a thin trickle of blood escaped past her lips before she crumpled to the ground, green ooze seeping from two fatal looking stab wounds gaping open in her lower back.

Trisana shrieked, stumbling numbly towards her sister and Lilam in horror. Anishar bent down to clean off one dagger on the fallen Sentinel's sleeve. "Fal, I said distract them for a moment while I get into place, not make pseudo-psychotic advances at the druid."

The rogue then glanced up, shrugging almost apologetically at Ellisah. "I'd say go ahead and kill him if I didn't believe that he'd be too stupid to know he was dead and just keep on as normal. I'm beginning to think I might be cursed. We could always team up and stab the stupidity out of him. Three daggers are better than two. Trust me, you can _never _have too many daggers around Fal."

"She's a lot cuter up close" Falerian piped up, keeping aim on the Sentinels who were now eyeing Anishar with hate-filled glares. "She can rake her claws across make back any day. Besides, I've always wanted a pet." At this, Petunia snorted almost indignantly.

The hunter glanced down and added quickly, "I mean, a feline companion. You know, likes when you rub their belly and are good for keeping your lap warm. Normally, I'm not a cat man... but I can make an exception in this case."

Ellisah snatched her dagger from the ground with a feral snarl, holding it at arms length at Anishar. "Rogue. You and I have something we need to settle. I will see to it that your last moments are an eternity of raw, soul searing agony." Her voice was nothing more than a deadly whisper, the feral nature within her beginning to show.

Anishar's eyes narrowed as well, peering jeeringly at her from above his bandana. "So be it. And after I'm finished gutting your disfigured corpse, I'll be sure to send the girl and gnome shortly after you so that you may all be reunited in death along with the other two I had the pleasure of disemboweling. You should be thanking me. I'll be reuniting you with those two old fools. Be sure to send your regards for me, eh?"

Falerian frowned slightly, muttering to himself somewhat dejectedly. "Anishar always gets the girls. Must be that tall, dark and stabby thing he's got going for him. The girls love a man who knows more than one way to disembowel a person in twenty seconds or less. All that leather doesn't leave very much to the imagination either... plus he has big ears. And everyone knows what they about men with big ears. At least I know one woman who's crazy about me..."

He let the very edge of his vision fall on Petunia. The porcine companion snorted curiously at a cockroach skittering across the road before eagerly gobbling it up with a satisfied crunch. "Not very picky. Gotta' love that in a woman."

Lilam crept up beside Trisana, whose eyes were still glued upon the deceased Sentinel. "Well, I am now officially confizzled. So the hunter and rogue want to kill us, your sister, who is a few tools short of a full toolbox, I might add, wants to kill us, and your sister wants to kill the hunter and rogue that want to kill us and I just want to want to live long enough to have someone explain to me how babies are made.

"Every time I ask someone, they get all nervous-like and say 'wait 'til you're older'. And you know it's gotta' be something good if it's a secret until you get old. I just hope nothing else goes wrong because, conflagit, baby making machines that send mecanostriders to deliver babies in cabbage patches so they can grow on trees in order for parents to pick them just doesn't make sense! Even to me!"

The entire standoff was brought to a stand still as yet another voice joined the chaos. "Might I suggest that everyone calm down? You'll wake the dead with this raucous, and let me just say, we are not happy reanimated people when awoken to such defecation from the mouth."

The Forsaken clasped his hands behind his back, eyeing the group with piercing, yellow eyes. "And now talking zombies?!" Lilam exclaimed, putting hands to her cheek in disbelief.

"I'm a Forsaken, you twit. Not a mindless zombie."

"Oh... how am I suppose to know the difference? You both smell funny and eat people. And neither of you can dance. Must be the lack of rhythm... or heart beat, I'm not sure."

The undead merely sighed, turning his unwavering gaze upon Ellisah and Anishar. "I'd like the human and the gnome, but please hold any discriminating comments about my race lest I be forced to defend my honor and devour your face."

Ellisah spat on the ground. "Undead scum. No one is getting their hands on Trisana and that gnome but me."

"Woah... I believe the calling of 'dibs' is in order. And I call them first because my dagger is pointy and a pointy dagger typically means no objections, unless you call death moans objections" Anishar said, eyeing the new arrival frostily.

"Now this is what we call, a three way, folks" Falerian suddenly said, leveling his gun at the Forsaken.

"There's four of us, you nitwit" Anishar sighed.

"That's even better, a four way! I'm not really down with necrophilia, but I'll try anything once."

"Shut up, Fal. Every time you open your mouth we lose a 'fear me I'm evil' point on the evil villain meter. We're down to about negative eight now, thanks a lot."

Trisana couldn't get a good breath of air into her lungs, seemingly unable to retain enough oxygen.

"... twenty eight, twenty nine, twenty ten... uhh... eleventyfour... fortytwelve... five ninth and two quarters..."

Lilam had seated herself on the ground, one mail boot set down next to herself as she counted using both hands and toes.

"Lilam... what are you doing?!" Trisana hissed, finding her voice.

The warrior glanced up. "I'm counting how many people here want us dead. And it's a bunch! I had to use my toes!"

The Forsaken sighed again, letting his arms drop to his side as he took one step forward. "I'm afraid I have no intention of joining this altercation. My methods are far more effective, you might note."

His skeletal hands began to glow in a aqua blue aura as he raised them high above his head. Jagged shards of ice instantly frosted the ground and mercilessly wrapped around the ankles of Anishar, Falerian, Ellisah and the Sentinels. The mysterious Forsaken swiftly approached Trisana, offering her his hand.

"If you want to live, I suggest you both come with me."

Trisana hesitated, turning quickly to Lilam. And, she was still counting, apparently undecided in what number came after "hundredybillionfour". The girl bit her lip hard. Given the situation, did she really have a choice?

Without further hesitation, she grasped the man's hand, trying not to let the repulse she felt in the act show upon her face. The Forsaken then snatched up Lilam by the back of her collar, beginning to drag her along as well. With a cry of protest, Lilam managed to grab her boot and stuff her foot in it while being dragged along.

The man led the pair to the east side of Astranaar, pulling them into the stream that surrounded the town before they could hesitate. Sloshing through the freezing water, Trisana blurted out in a frightened squeak, "Where are we going?"

The man did not slow his pace, nor look to Trisana. He merely said two words: "Stonetalon Mountains."

* * *

Coming Soon -- _Chapter Five: The Curse of Friendship _

_Lilam and Trisana make a new friend (awww). Sorta. Half his lower jaw is missing, so there's hardly enough left of him to designate him as a "friend". However, compelling circumstances will quite forcefully turn this duo into a reluctant trio…_


	10. The Spoon, The Pole and The Bear

**WaFfLe TiMe WiTh LiLaM PrEsEnTs:**_ The Spoon, The Pole and The Bear_

* * *

_This was Lilam's first trip to Ashenvale. The Elven lands were still a grand mystery to the gnome who was truly at home in the pristine permafrost of the Dwarven controlled territories. While these luscious, forest-laden lands were very majestic, they also held a sense of enigma for Lilam. _

_Who knew what was lurking in the thick underbrush of Ashenvale's endless green? What magics still lay hidden underneath the false azure sky? Who wears short shorts? (The Boy-King of Stormwind ...wears short shorts... zing!). But these were not questions that Lilam was meant to answer. Fate had different plans in store for the quirky warrior..._

It was one of those days that just make you feel good inside. And considering Lilam always felt good inside, the plucky warrior was in a particularly spunky mood. She skipped mirthfully down the time-worn road, kicking up a dust storm of thick sediments and minerals that glimmered and winked in the noontime sun like a fine rain of stardust.

The scenery was completely foreign to the gnome, the surrealism of the beauty so captivating that Lilam could not keep her jade colored eyes on just one single thing before her curiosity being snatched in a whole new direction, garnering her full attention. So when she happened to pass by a black bear snuffling nearby the road, Lilam hardly noticed.

Even if she had been aware of the animal's presence, she would not have been in any way alarmed. They had bears in the areas surrounding Kharanos, where Lilam was born and had grown up. The young warrior noticed that as she became stronger and moved along in seasons of training, the bears no longer acted aggressively towards her, unless she got too close.

So naturally, she assumed this was the case with all bears. The Ashenvale bear growled lowly at her as she pranced by. "Well grrrrrreat day to you too, Mr. Bear!", Lilam said with a wave, continuing on her way. Before she knew it, a sudden blow across her back sent her spiraling head over heels along the road until she came rolling to a stop.

"Owchers! Boy-o... that is... some strong wind!" Lilam exclaimed as she sat up, grateful that the shield strapped to her back had taken the brunt of the force. An oblong, drop of liquid landed with a soft _plop _between the gnome's splayed legs.

"Rain?" she pondered aloud, noting that there was not a rain cloud blemishing the vast azure above. "Those silly moony elves must be playing with the weather... I wonder if they can make it rain milk. Then, all I'd need was a ginormous piece of toast and I'd be one very happy Lilam. Not as happy as if I could get the High Tinker to sign each one of my toes, my left elbow and my right cheek, but close..."

A threatening growl from right above her left her sentence hanging in the air, unfinished. With a squeak, Lilam leapt to her feet, whirling around to be face to face with "Mr. Bear". He snorted rancid bear breath right in her face, blowing the loose strands of hair in her face back behind her ear.

"Uhhh... are we gonna' have a problem, Mr. Bear? Because I'm sure standing this close has got to be breaking some third wall... and if not, then your breath certainly did."

The bear roared in indignant fury, causing Lilam to take a few back. She unsheathed her sword and shield, recovering her retreat by stepping into a fighting stance.

"Right-o. Mr. Bear, let me introduce you to Mr. Stabby Sword and Mr. Slammy Shield. Mr. Stabby Sword would like to shake hands with your face. Prepare to be warriored!"

The scuffle didn't last long. In the end, Lilam was the victor however, she did not come out unscathed.

"Co-fluxing capacitors! Who woulda' guessed he'd get so grouchy over something as minor as a profuse internal and external bleeding? I'm sure it wasn't all that... _unbearable_."

Lilam giggled at the horrible pun. "Since he _bared _his teeth, one would think he could _bear _more than that, but he could _bare_ly hold his own with his own _bare _hands. Maybe because he was _bare _naked and _ber_eft of clothes so he should grow a beard. Wait... beard? Why is beard spelled like bear but doesn't sound like it at all?"

Lilam attempted to ponder this paradoxical enigma, but soon gave up and instead, consulted her map. "I know there's a pond or lake around here somewhere... I'm hungrier than a hungry... bear."

The bright eyed gnome left the gravel path, heading toward the forest in the direction which she thought she would find a source of water, and in turn, fish. While this seemed to be a simple and uncomplicated endeavor, it proved to be quite an arduous task.

Like in a bizarre case of deja vu, Lilam was stopped and forced to contend with bear after bear, each time only barely escaping with her life. _Nuts and bolts! How many bears _are_ there in Ashenvale? I can't take two baby gnome steps without running right smack into another one!_, Lilam thought in a mixture of utter amazement and growing suspicion.

After what seemed like days, she finally spotted a small lake and rushed to it gratefully. Plopping down on the bank with a loud, fatigued sigh, Lilam immediately unpacked her fishing pole and tried to enjoy her favorite pastime and hopefully catch something to quiet her defiant stomach.

Her stomach was very vocal about its discomfort, growling quite audibly. "Hush tummy! I'll catch some fishies in a splickety quick second and then..."

Another loud growl interrupted her attempts to reconcile with her hunger. Only, this time it wasn't her stomach. Lilam sighed, ready to pull out her hair from the follicle. "This is becoming unbearable! Why are these bears so overbearing?!"

With a shrill cry of frustration, Lilam spun around and brought her fishing pole across the surprised beast's face like a whip, the resounding _crack _hanging satisfyingly in the air. The bear was momentarily stunned. Lilam saw this and wasted no time sprinting off and away from the bear.

She paused by a tree to catch her breath, leaning her back against it wearily and sliding to the forest floor. An unexpected ruckus caused her to look up sharply as three more Ashenvale bears came bounding out of the underbrush straight at her.

Knowing there was no way she'd survive a tri-assault, Lilam bolted. She leapt over upturned roots, dodged past gnarled branches and skirted past trees and anything else that tried to block her path as she fled. Two of the bears finally gave up the chase, but the one with the lovely welt across his face just kept coming.

A rock cleverly covered up to look like a clump of dirt abruptly tripped the retreating gnome, sending her into a frantic dive onto the ground. She quickly sat up and turned to glower at the slowly approaching bear.

"You look familiar... in fact, all you bears do! I keep killing you but you keep coming back! Why won't you bears stay down? What do I have to do to keep you away from me?!"

Of course, her questions fell on deaf ears and the bear continued to draw nearer. Assuming that her sword was not doing the trick, Lilam rummaged through her pack for something, anything that would stop the bear from "resurrecting" and coming back to attack her.

The bear was almost upon her when she finally resorted to grabbing whatever item she had in her hand at the moment and hope that she wouldn't be brutally mauled all alone in a strange forest where no one would ever find her.

"Die evil bear!" she shouted, thrusting the item before her and clenching her eyes shut so at least she wouldn't have to watch as the bear tore her limb from limb. She waited. And waited. But nothing happened.

Lilam opened one eye. There was no bear there. He had completely vanished. Lilam blinked in utter amazement, letting her gaze fall upon the holiest of holy weapons that had magically saved her life. A single silver spoon rested innocuously in her palm.

"This must be..." she whispered in awestruck disbelief, "... a magicy spoon! It must have some... bear repellant powers that only effect bears, but not gnomes! Hurray!" She lifted the spoon high in the air, and smiled widely as she held it in her vision as if it were Uther's hammer itself.

* * *

The hunter patted the fuzzy head of his new pet, exiting the woods and wandering onto the path with a bounce in his step. He grinned smugly to himself, eyeing the bear at his side with swelling pride. _Good thing that gnome was there to distract this big guy, or I might have never been able to tame him on my own! What luck!_

* * *

Lilam trekked her way back to Astranaar to replenish her mind, body and most of all, her stomach. On the way there, she had no more bear troubles to speak of. She sat on a bench near the wall of the Inn, munching happily on some crusty bread. 

A proud looking hunter sauntered in with a discontented bear following close behind. Lilam nearly choked on a wad of soggy bread. Without hesitation, she sprang up from her seat and approached the hunter with a wary eye on his pet.

"Moony elf man! There's a bear following you! Run before he snaps your ears off like carrot sticks!"

The Night Elf looked down at the gnome dancing on her feet and frowned. "He's supposed to be following me. He's my pet. Don't worry, he's tame."

Lilam shook her head furiously. "That's just a trick! Those bears, they're... sneaky! Yes, sneaky bears are sneaky! He's just trying to trick you and--"

The man interrupted her with a large hand covering her mouth. "You're not very bright, are you?"

Lilam shoved his hand aside in exasperation. "And you're not the sharpest apple in the crayon box are you?"

"Sh...what?"

"Fine, don't believe me! But you'll regret it. If I were you, I'd get a spoon" Lilam said with a shrug, walking off.

The hunter shook his head, marveling at the effects of radiation and the apparent dilapidating affects they had on the gnomish brain. He strolled out of the Inn and began to head for Stonetalon Mountains, until a low growl stopped him in his tracks...

Lilam was humming to herself jovially when shouts rang out into the crisp, fall air.

"Growly? Growly, why are you looking at me like that? Take it easy, I'll get you something to eat I pro--. Dear merciful Elune in the heavens, why are his teeth so sharp?! No, please! Don't bite me there, that's tender! Sweet Moon Goddess from above! His claws are like serrated glass shards dipped in acid and lit on fire! Why, oh why did I choose to be a hunter? I don't even like leather! It makes me look fat... which is what this bear is now chewing on! Aaaiiiieee!!..."

Lilam merely shook her head. _Ignorance is excruciatingly painful bliss._

"You may have won this round bears, but be warned!" Lilam exclaimed to the wind. "Lilam Firesparks is on to your sneaky bear plots to get rid of me. And I don't know why you chose me, but your plans to take over all of Azeroth will fail, so long as I have a magicy spoon in my hand! On my warrior's oath, I swear that your bear empire will fall before the might of my magicy spoon!"

And with this proclamation, Lilam Firesparks, bear slayer, chased after the still screaming Night Elf, spoon held high in the air and ready to give those bears a piece of her mind and more importantly, a piece of her cutlery.


	11. The Curse Of Friendship

**Chapter Five: The Curse of Friendship**

* * *

"Down here. This way." The Forsaken commanded gruffly as the trio stepped onto the muddy banks and back onto the road. He led them off the path and down towards the dense brush of the valley below.

"I don't mean to break up this happy-train... but I'm choking, let go please!" Lilam shouted in indignation, twisting violently against the man's hold on her collar. With a cruel grin, the Forsaken released the struggling gnome, who then tumble-rolled the rest of the way down the slope they were descending upon.

"Better?" the man inquired as he stepped over Lilam and continued on.

Lilam stood dizzily with a frown. "Next town we stop at Trissy... remind me to buy very many collarless shirts. The whole 'grab me by my collar and try to choke me 'til I'm blue as a moony elf' is starting to happen more often than I like."

Trisana sighed, grasping the unstable gnome by one shoulder and directing her after the mysterious Forsaken. "Sir... ", Trisana called out to his hunched, cloak-covered back, "We haven't thanked you for helping us back there. We both thank you for saving us, but we don't even know your name."

The man did not reply at first, leading them deeper and deeper into the shaded forest. "... It's not important right now."

Lilam, now steady on her feet, caught up to the Forsaken and tugged at his embroidered cloak. "Then what are we supposed to call you? 'Cause if I have to make up a name for you, I will. Okay... lemme think. Uhh... how about Slappy? You look like a Slappy to me."

The man snatched his cloak from the curious gnome's grasp, his illuminant eyes peering down at her disdainfully. "Perhaps you would be more comfortable traveling in my airless, tightly sealed pack for an hour or two?"

Lilam made a face. "No thanks, I don't like cramped places. But thanky kindly for the offer, Slappy."

Something on the man's face twitched, but whatever it was quickly disappeared within the span of an eye blink. "If you must know... my name is..."

Lilam put a hand to her ear. "What was that? I didn't hear you, Slappy."

The Forsaken narrowed his eyes at the warrior, coming to a slow stop as he glowered down at her. "My name... it is..."

Yet again, the man's voice trailed off. Lilam nodded at him encouragingly, urging, "Go on, I promise I won't laugh or nothing."

The Forsaken's expression did not change, his visage devoid of emotion. "Ferry."

Lilam blinked. "Faerie... dragons? Nope, haven't seen any, why?"

"No... that is my name."

Lilam blinked again, this time much slower. "Oh..." There was about a moment's pause before she burst out laughing, holding her sides with mirth.

"I... I'm sorry... I was laughing at you, not with you."

Trisana figured that was her cue to step in, abruptly covering Lilam's mouth with her hand, silencing the gnome's laugher. "I think she meant that she was laughing with you not at you... even though you're not laughing. Please forgive her for her rudeness Mr... Ferry."

The girl hid the tiniest of smirks, quickly turning from the Forsaken to glance at Lilam. The humor that she had covertly veiled left her as she took a closer look at the gnome.

"Lilam... your face..."

Lilam immediately gasped, the smiled ripped right off her face. "Oh no! Is it my dimple? Did it fall off?!"

Trisana kneeled before the panicking gnome, shaking her head. "Umm... no. I was referring to the cut my sister gave you... it's still bleeding."

Lilam exhaled in relief, flashing a ready smile. "Phew! I thought I lost a dimple. I think they hold my face together, so it would be very bad if I lost one. And don't worry about the cut, I forgot all about it. I've gotten worst... and for the record, I've done much worst to myself on accident. Let me just say that when your mum says don't run with galvanized pulse-a-tronic wire snippers, it's probably a good idea to listen."

Trisana merely nodded at Lilam choosing to humor her as usual before replying, "Lilam, do you have any bandages? Or some sort of cloth, even?"

"Of course! I may not be a pallyman or priest, but I do know my way around a bandage." Lilam shrugged off her pack, digging inside until she found a silk bandage, passing it over to Trisana. The girl gently turned the gnome's head to the side, so she could get a better look at the wound.

It wasn't very deep at all; a flesh wound. "Lilam... I'm so sorry..." Trisana said quietly, the backs of her eyes beginning to burn again. "I promise... Ellisah won't hurt you again. I won't let her." With that said, Trisana brought the bandage close to Lilam's face, but pausing as an odd feeling swept over her like a cooling rain.

Before she knew what was happening, her hands became surrounded in a faint, green glow before the light leapt from her hands and spilled onto Lilam's cheek. Trisana cried out in surprise, reeling back and sitting down hard.

Alarmed, Lilam brought a hand quickly to her cheek... her now smooth and unmarked cheek. The gnome's large eyes fell on Trisana, who merely stared back at her, mouth agape and eyes stretched wide.

"You healed my cheek! I thought you said you didn't have any powers..." Lilam said accusingly, rubbing her slightly warm cheek musingly.

"I... I don't," Trisana stammered, lifting her hands to her face, examining them as if they were foreign objects. "I never got the chance to train in anything... I only watched and listened to tales from my father, perhaps read a book or two, but never more that that."

Lilam stroked her chin. "Well, what'd you do to make that light come out? Can you do it again?"

"I didn't do anything special..." Trisana admitted, holding her hands aloft. "But I did feel... strange for a moment. Like something washed over me... or guiding me..." She focused her eyes on her hands, willing herself to rediscover that strange sensation from before. Nothing happened.

"I guess I can't do it again..."

"Of course you can! I know! Maybe you need something to heal. I'll just take my sword and... "

"NO!"

"Aww... Well, I could always borrow my mum's galvanized pulse-a-tronic wire snippers... "

Ferry cleared his throat loudly, interrupting Lilam. "As much as I would enjoy watching the gnome mutilate herself, I'm afraid I must interject. I cannot tolerate listening to you both any longer. If I had a stomach or any other fully intact internal organs, I would be ripping them out by the handfuls right now. I grow tired of this facade and shall be taking my leave now. That is, after you hand over what is rightfully mine."

Trisana opened her mouth to reply, but Lilam beat her to it.

"What'chu talkin' 'bout, Jerry?"

"I told you, my name is Ferry."

Lilam scrunched her nose at the Forsaken. "But Ferry is soooo... you know."

"See, this is what I mean. And yet, if I devoured your face right now,_ I _would be the bad guy."

"Only if you didn't chew with your mouth closed," Lilam pointed out. "Cannonballizing is no excuse for bad manners."

Trisana pushed Lilam behind her, eyeing Ferry warily. "What did you mean by 'hand over what is rightfully yours'? I don't have the scroll nor do I know where or even what it is, if you weren't listening back there."

Ferry sighed, raising a bleached hand and pointing at Lilam. "I have no interest in a dusty, useless piece of parchment. What I am referring to is _that_-- the ring on the gnome's finger. Give it to me so that I may be on my way before the others arrive and I be forced to contest with them as well."

Lilam smiled apologetically, explaining, "Well, I'd be glad to give you the ring, even if you didn't say please, but the ring is stuck so you're out of luck... Chuck."

"First off, I'm not going to remind you again that my name is Ferry. Not Jerry and especially not Chuck. And secondly..." The Forsaken's eyes flashed once as his hand became bathed in blue light, the eerily glow dancing about his decaying face.

"... I was not requesting the ring; it was an ultimatum. I've had my eyes on the jewel that was fused to that ring for a long time now and will not see its power wasted on a mentally insane gnome. If the ring is stuck, then I'll just have to take the whole finger."

Shards of ice snaked around Lilam and Trisana's ankles, holding them in place.

Lilam glanced at the ring, then back up at Ferry. "You know... I was never a big fan of jewelry anyway... I'm a big fan of fingers though. Biiig fan. They help me do important stuff. Like… point. And other… essential things, I'm sure."

The decaying skin that was left on the Forsaken's lips was pulled taunt in a repulsive sneer as he reached within the folds of his unwrinkled, violet robes and pulled out a curved dagger.

"How droll. You're just full of life and spunk, aren't you? How would you like if I carved that right out of you?"

Lilam gave him a hard, long look.

"No... no, I don't think I would like that very much at all. Was that a trick question? I didn't know there'd be a test! You didn't give me a chance to study at all! But that okay, I'll just go with my emergency back-up answer: Antidisestablishmentarianism. See, saying that big ol' smart word makes me sound learned. That's my answer to most questions. Can I keep my fingers now?"

Ferry's response was to crouch to the ground and snatch the gnome's wrist, holding it fast in a steely grip.

"See, I wasn't going to eat your corpse, but to make certain that there is not even the remote possibility that you are somehow reanimated and brought back to the realm of the living, I have to. I hope you're happy with yourself. Now I'll feel like such a fatty. Do you know how long it took me to look _this _malnourished?"

Lilam was attempting to pull free from the man's unrelenting grip, ignoring the loss of feeling from her ankles to her feet.

"Is that another trick question? Antidisestablishmentarianism! Please don't ask me to spell it... I think there's a letter four in there somewhere... Leggo' of my arm! You're invading my personal space and my personal arm, so keep your bone claws to yourself or I'll invade your personal face with my personal sword and you do not want me to get personal, Harry!"

The patch of skin right under Ferry's left eye twitched. Remaining silent, the Forsaken clamped down Lilam's fingers on her right hand until only the one adorned with the ring stood rigid. "My name..." Ferry stated in a frightening calm manner, "... is Ferry." He lifted the blade into the air, letting it hover for only a moment.

Trisana, who, quite literally, had been frozen in place, now made a mad grab at Ferry. "No! Please... don't! Don't hurt her!" she managed to shriek as she toppled off balance unable to reach the Forsaken as her ankles were held fast in place by the encasement of ice.

The small warrior let out a swine-like squeal, eyes widening on the dagger's descent. "Squeeeee! Don't cut off Pointy finger! You moldy bone bully! Cut off your own fingers and see how _you _like it!"

Lilam's protest sprang to the canopy of trees and became muffled into silence and the only sound left was that of an appendage hitting the leaf littered floor. Trisana's mouth hung open in a silent shriek of horror, her voice caught somewhere between her chest and throat. A scream about twelve octaves higher than that of the normal vocal range ripped past Lilam's lips until her face turned completely scarlet from exertion.

----------------------------------------------------------

_Yes, antidisestablishmentarianism is a real word. Look it up, ya' lazy bums. _

----------------------------------------------------------

"Lilam..."

The gnome panted, drawing oxygen back into her depleted lungs before replying, "Yup?"

Trisana choked on her words, until they finally burst forth from her mouth. "Why were you screaming?!" The girl extended an arm and pointed with a trembling hand at the skeletal finger resting in the grass. "He didn't even nick you!"

Lilam gave Trisana one of her dramatic "are you insane?" looks. "I know that. But I just remembered... I forgot to eat breakfast this morning! That's the most important meal of the day! And do you know why it's important? 'Cause every day should start out with a big bowl of Super Coated Frosted Saccharine Glucose Happy Powder Sugar Nugget Rock Flake Chunks Delight!

"A full weeks supply of sugar in every bite! I normally start out each morning with that and a glass of sugar water, unless I don't feel like drinking water, in which case I just melt the sugar and drink that. Ooo, and there's a prize in every box! Free insulin lollipops, yummers!"

When Trisana fell speechless, not even wanting to think about what Lilam would be like had she eaten that confectionary nightmare, Ferry, now missing an index finger, narrowed his gaze upon the chattering gnome.

"How... how did you do that, you little snit?!" he hissed, his golden eyes studying the tiny warrior.

Lilam reached down and picked up the Forsaken's severed appendage, pointing the finger at Ferry accusingly. "If you can't say anything nice, your tongue will turn to ice... or you'll get eaten by mice. It might really happen too, 'cause it rhymes."

The dagger flashed and Lilam squeaked, "Don't stab me, it's not nice... remember the ice, and the mice!"

She shoved her hands out front to protect her face just as the bejeweled ring flashed in an iridescent display of ethereal light. Ferry's hand froze in midair as if hitting a wall.

"What?!" he exclaimed in surprise, trying to push his dagger hand forward, but was unsuccessful. The ice shackles holding Lilam and Trisana captive suddenly burst into sparkling twinkles of ice fragments as the spell ended, freeing the two girls.

"Lilam... how did you do that?" Trisana asked slowly, peering at Ferry as he struggled with himself.

Ferry replied instead, his words barbed and venom soaked through his gritted teeth.

"Are you both truly that dense? It is apparent that the magiks compounded into that ring allow that dim-witted gnome to control my actions, and who knows what else with a mere command! It is far more powerful than I had anticipated! Relinquish it to me now!"

Lilam blinked at the ring, then at Ferry, a sly, mischievous smirk forming on her face.

Ferry saw the look in the young gnome's eyes and immediately regretted his previous explanation. "Curse my innate need to sound arrogantly superior and loftily intelligent. What I meant to say was... the ring is made of candy, oooo! Eat it! It's bad for you, so that makes you desire it even more!"

Lilam's grin grew wider.

Ferry took a step back. "Shadow save me... Don't you dare do what you're thinking of doing, gnome. I'm not joking. Don't. Does this face look like it's joking with you? Do not get any ridiculous ide--"

"Pick your nose!"

Unable to stop himself, Ferry's remaining index finger shot up and burrowed itself into his exposed nasal cavities. Lilam exploded in a giggle fit, wiping the mirthful tears from her eyes with the Forsaken's lopped off finger.

"This is probably the only time I wish I had eyebrows. Then, you could see them furrow together. You know why? Because I'm not too pleased at the moment. This is me angry. Actually, I'm quite livid. Even imagining all the indescribably agonizing ways I could kill you is doing little to curb my ire," Ferry said tersely with a finger lodged in his nose.

Between bouts of giggles, Lilam inquired, "Can... can you pick your brain too?"

"I am filled with an unimaginable murderous rage that threatens to sunder the very fabric of my already questionable sanity."

"Does that mean you need a huggle?"

"... I hate you so much..."

Trisana placed a hand on Lilam's shoulder, bringing the gnome back to reality. "Lilam, sorry to interrupt your moment... but we need to go! Need I remind you that we're being chased!"

Lilam sighed with the slightest pouting of her lips. "I remember. Ferry quit digging for nose gold, I guess." The man glowered at the gnome, and snatched his finger from his face. Lilam handed over his severed finger to him.

Ferry plucked the digit from her grasp and fashioned it back on his hand. It was crooked. Lilam covered her mouth to stifle her laughter and Ferry shot her a look of pure hatred.

"Okay, let's go!" Trisana glanced at the Forsaken. "And Lilam, bring Ferry along too. We might need his... assistance."

Lilam nodded with a quick salute. "Right-o! I've always wanted a real live pet, 'cause Squiget is made of mechanical stuff. Terry is close enough, I suppose."

"Ferry! My name is Ferry, you--"

Lilam began to skip forward, yelling behind her, "Come on, Terry! Let's go for a walk!"

Then, almost as soon as Lilam had began prancing ahead, she came to a complete stop.

"What's wrong, Lilam?" Trisana asked as she came up beside the gnome, followed by a muttering Ferry.

"Buh..." Lilam stammered.

"Buh? What's a buh?"

"Beh..." The warrior's arm shot up into the air as she pointed directly before the trio. "IT'S A WHOLE SNEAKY BEAR NEST CRAWLING WITH... **BEARS**!"

Sure enough, there were quite a few Ashenvale bears mulling about the forest, blocking their way. Lilam pointed the ring at the oblivious beasts, shouting at the top of her lungs, "**DIE YOU FURRY, FUZZ-FACE FIENDS**!"

Nothing happened. Lilam brought the ring close to her face to inspect it. "Cheap ol' ring. Doesn't even work on bears, the most sneakiest of all evil things that start with a 'B'! Maybe I can exchange it... Hey, do those Dark Strandy guys have an exchange policy on this glowy jewel? I hope they kept the receipt!"

Ferry's insipid gaze stared blankly ahead. "Urge to slaughter everything in sight rising..."

* * *

Just before panic could set in for Trisana, Lilam whirled around to face her, an uncharacteristically solemn expression smoothing her features.

"My brain just thinked up a fantactular plan!"

Ferry attempted to roll his eyes, then, noting the absence of the essential components in the act, resigned to muttering, "Somewhere, an instructor of the Common language is blissfully swinging from a thick rope in a tree ... How I envy him."

Ignoring the comment, Lilam continued. "Now don't worry, I'm an expert in bear slaying and warriology. So listen carefully, 'cause this is what's gonna' happen..."

The forsaken gave her a sideways look, while Trisana nodded, remembering back to when the fiesty warrior had saved her life from the bear in Darkshore.

Lilam turned from them a moment, then whipped around, lifting both a spoon and a fishing rod in her hands. "I'll defeat 'em with these! Double the bopping, double the fun!"

"Please! Go right ahead, what are you still standing here for? Go get them, hurry before they escape!" Ferry encouraged eagerly, a malicious light entering his gaze.

The gnome nodded enthusiastically, lifting her "weapons" and shouting, "Chaaarrgge!" but was abruptly stopped as Trisana caught the tail of her cloak before she could dash off.

"I have a better idea."

Lilam and Ferry turned to Trisana, who had suddenly spoken up, both gnome and forsaken looking very much disappointed, albeit for different reasons. "Aww... what could be betterer than bopping bears with magicky spoons and fishing poles?"

"How about Ferry just make a portal to where we want to go? Mages can do that, right?"

Lilam scratched her chin. "Hmmm... why didn't we think of that earlier? It seems kinda' obvious now that you said it..."

Trisana shook her head. "It doesn't matter now, let's just go!"

The gnome waggled the fishing pole in Ferry's face patronizingly. "Okay, Kerry, get to portaling us to Feral-las!"

"With the pleasure akin to tactilely dismembering a family of gnomes," He sneered, involuntarily beginning to summon the magic needed to complete the requested spell.

The empty space before them began to twist and distort, the air crackling angrily and growing thinner until a gaping, glowing portal split the air in twain.

Lilam clapped, smiling up at Ferry. "Warriortastical! Nice trick! So... how's this doohickismicky work?"

"You step through it, you punitive imbecile."

"I see... and how safe is this squiggly person sender supposed to be?"

"Well, there is the slim possibility that you could wind up with your insides on the outside if the spell was defective in some way... lucky for me, I have no internal organs or innards to speak of. Sucks to be you, huh?"

Trisana and Lilam stole a look.

"Umm... perhaps you should go first," Trisana said, swallowing visibly.

Ferry gave a sinister grin in her direction. "Gladly, if only to escape the incessant prattling of the halfling for one blissful moment of silence."

And without another word, he wrapped his flowing cloak around himself and his skeletal frame disappeared within the swirling, temporal vortex.

"I wonder why he doesn't just pop out the other side…" Lilam pondered aloud, peering behind the portal curiously.

"It's complicated, trust me. Ask Ferry about it later. By the way, Lilam, does it bother you that Ferry hates the mere thought of your existence?"

The confused look upon Lilam's face was a clear indication that she had no clue what the girl was talking about. "He what? Ferry loves me! He told me himself. He said he would love to just pick me up and hug me until my spine snapped and all the contents of my skull start pouring from my mouth and eye sockets… I think he's just shy."

"Never mind."

"Don't worry, he likes you too! He said he'd save a big hug just for you."

"Good to… know," Trisana sighed, rubbing her right temple nervously. "We better get going now."

She was just about to put one foot through the portal when she noticed Lilam was not following, but rather, staring past the portal. "Lilam, you coming?"

Nodding vaguely, Lilam turned her inquisitive, viridian eyes to Trisana. "Yeah… but I wanted to know, how far away is Fera-lost anyway?"

"Very far, but we can be there in an instant using a portal, so come on. Why do you want to know?"

Lilam pointed past Trisana and said, matter-of-factly, "Because unless Fera-lost is about twenty feet in front of us, I think Kerry might need to look at his map again… or ask those bears for directions."

Trisana backpedaled, following where Lilam was indicating, and sure enough, a portal identical to the one in front of her appeared dead center of the clearing and out stepped an unsuspecting Ferry.

"Oh no…" Trisana said in a hushed, mortified whisper.

"I know! He's never gonna' ask those bears for directions. If he did, he'd be a girl. Dad said it's what makes boys and girls different from each other; girls ask for directions, and boys don't."

The realization that something had utterly and completely messed up quickly dawned on Ferry, who then subsequently found himself locking eyes with Lilam. He mouthed something, which Lilam immediately nodded in comprehension.

"What did he say?" Trisana inquired, noticing how every bear in the vicinity now had its hungry gaze fixated on Ferry.

"He said to sneak to the tunnel while he distracts the bears."

Trisana shot the small warrior a skeptical look. "Are you sure?"

Lilam's shoulder's rose and fell. "I dunno, wanna' go up and ask him?"

"… No."

Ferry slipped a worn, indigo tipped wand from the folds of his robe.

"Well, that's not gonna' distract the bears. I'll help him!" Cupping her hands around her mouth, Lilam shouted, "Harry! Sing them a song, that should distract them!" Then, she flashed the bewildered forsaken the "v" sign for victory, and scrambled into the forest underbrush alongside Trisana.

Ferry attempted to cover his mouth, but to no avail; instantaneously, he began to recall a song that he had once heard a Tauren acquaintance of his sing a long time ago.

"My milkshake brings all the bulls to the yard, and they're like, it's better than yours…"

To Lilam's disappointment, she could barely even hear the jaunty tune above the rage-filled roars and nasty snarls from a less than impressed audience.

"Sneak sneak sneak sneak sneak sneak sne—"

"Lilam, you don't have to say sneak repeatedly while you're sneaking, you know," Trisana hissed into the gnome's ear, interrupting her.

"Really? Where's the fun in sneaking then?"

With Ferry serving as distraction, Lilam and Trisana were able to safely slip past the preoccupied bears in the clearing, and make it to the entrance of the tunnel that led to Stonetalon.

"I hope Larry knows that he can stop now…" Lilam mused, peering down the dimly lit tunnel.

Right on cue, the ring encircling Lilam's finger flashed, flooding the tunnel with an ethereal glow. Ferry appeared in a blink of the eye, towering over Lilam while pure odium oozed from his person, permeating the air so thickly one could choke off it.

Before Lilam could turn, the livid forsaken had taken his dagger in hand and lunged forward to thrust the blade into her back and bury it to the hilt. Trisana let out a horrified warning screech that was magnified tenfold by the acoustics of the tunnel as Ferry weapon penetrated the bag on Lilam's back.

* * *

As much shock as a bare bone face could express blossomed across Ferry's immobile features as his dagger struck something hard within the confines of the tiny warrior's pack, sending painful reverberations up his arm.

"Hiya, Gary! How'd you get here?" Lilam greeted with a smile, turning to face Ferry, utterly oblivious to his failed attempt to murder her and the death beams shooting from his eyes.

"What in the name of eternal darkness is in your pack?!"

The gnome blinked up at him. "Uhh… some food, my fishing pole, some string, lots of spoons, a big ol' rock—"

"A rock?" It was Ferry's turn to blink blankly at Lilam.

"Yep, good for warrior training. Some moony elf gave it to me. He said I could have it, put it in my pack for me and all. Then he pushed me into a lake, even though I wasn't even in my bathing suit. I guess he thought I needed to cool off, and the swim was refreshing I suppose. Good thing gnomes are natural floaters, huh?"

Trisana, recovering from her heart literally stopping for one brief moment of fright, reached out and drew Lilam behind her, fixing a teary, accusing gaze on Ferry.

They locked eyes (well, eyes and eye sockets). With an undaunted grin, the forsaken gave the girl a jeering look. "What?"

Lilam appeared confused, looking back and forth between the two. "What's wrong, Trissy? It's okay, I'm used to Harry's smell now, no need to move me back."

Looking down at Lilam's face, so completely unaware of any form of rational reality, Trisana knew that the gnome would not believe that Ferry had just tried to claim her life. With concern evident upon her face, Trisana wondered if Lilam saw any evil or darkness in anyone… besides bears, that is.

"Are you crying, Trissy?" Worry was beginning to creep into her voice and spread across her features.

The girl shook her head. "No, I'm just… so happy that we all made it, is all."

The familiar grin appeared back on Lilam's face as she gave Trisana the double "v" for victory motion with her hands. "Me too! And I even got to hear Barry sing. He's almost as good as me! But why didn't your portal thingamajiger work, Barry?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Ferry sneered, slipping his hand into the arms of his robes, concealing his dagger.

Lilam stared at him blankly.

"Of course… I forgot, you're a halfwit. Anyone with some semblance of intelligence could tell that your ring is somehow interfering with my spells, thus rendering them useless. Our only option now is to travel to Stonetalon by means of ambulation."

"Right-o… to whatever you said. I'll lead the way, as warrior's always do. It's part of our job description. Yup, warrior's do it all… slice, dice and take hard hits to the face more than twice!" Lilam gave a sharp salute to her companions, then proceeded to march towards Stonetalon.

Before Trisana turned to follow Lilam, who had taken off in a sprint down the length of the tunnel, she narrowed her eyes at Ferry not hiding the distrust that plagued her mind.

"Lay one hand on Lilam and you'll regret it."

Chuckling quietly, the forsaken's golden gaze mocked her words, challenging her. "Truly? I'm afraid your false bravado is wasted on me, girl. Save your empty threats for someone who wouldn't hesitate to peel the flesh from your face and make you watch him savor every strip if he so chose. Instead, you should be grateful you're not the one I'm after. However, should you get in my way, that is subject to change..."

In long, confident strides, Ferry approached her, giving her a lipless grin. "By your leave," he said mockingly with a shallow bow.

Defiantly, Trisana turned her vulnerable back to the grinning forsaken and started out after Lilam, folding her arms and tucking her hands under them so her shaking fists could not be seen…

* * *

"Well... this kinda' sucks," Falerian mused aloud, breaking the awkward silence as he attempted to free himself from his ice shackles.

Anishar was quick to pinch the hunter's ear closest to him and jerk Falerian towards him until they were just the right distance for him to scream into his ear, "What are you waiting for, idiot?! Shoot them, before they get away!"

Batting the rogue's hand away and trying to shake off the ringing in his ears, Falerian scoffed at his companion.

"Did you have an accident with some blinding powder? Can't you see that my _legs are frozen_?"

Anishar made a swipe for Falerian's ear again, but this time the hunter saw it coming and leaned back, causing the rogue to topple over.

"And what does that have to do with you picking up your gun WITH YOUR HANDS and shooting?!", Anishar sputtered, beginning to hyperventilate.

"You wouldn't understand. You're not a girl."

"... What?"

Falerian took the moment following Anishar's bewildered response to wink at Ellisah and the rest of the Sentinels who were also held captive by their own frozen cuffs. "Am I right, ladies?"

"As soon as this spell is lifted," Ellisah began with a grotesque half sneer, half smile, "I'm going to carve out your heart and bat it about like a macabre yarn ball."

Batting his eyes at the malicious druid, the hunter opened his arms wide, as if giving her a clear path to his heart. "It's a date then, kitty cat."

"Sister Ellisah," one Sentinel whispered to the growling druid. "I mean no disrespect, but for what reason did you not cast the spell of roots or any nature spell at our target or even at these two incompetent meddlers?"

"Do not question my methods," hissed Ellisah, her eyes narrowing to almost indiscernible slits. "I have never been one to rely on spells to dispose of those who stand against me. There is no satisfaction in that. I chose the path of feral druidry for a reason; the blood of my enemies will wash over me as an unending torrent into my cup of vengeance and I will gladly relish the taste of their everlasting torment which I have brought upon them."

Even Anishar had to give pause to this appalling statement. "Well, that confirms it; she's got the murloc madness, the leper gnomitis, the Goldshire effect... she's seen the Well of Absolute Insanity and drank deeply from it's waters. This is the worst case of the crazies I've seen since..."

Anishar's sentence trailed off as his gaze found it's way to the hunter at his side. "Well, in defense of my adorable love kitten, she's no more crazier than you," Falerian was quick to point out, noting Anishar looking at him strangely.

"Yeah, right. Like I'm anywhere _near _as morbidly violent as she is. Now shut up before rip out your eyes and play double dutch with your optic nerves."

"You know, I don't get the same whole body tingly sensation when you say things like that, as opposed to my feisty kitten of love..."

There was the sweetly melodic sound of tinkling glass as the ice encasements burst into nothing more than a vaporous mist of silver dust.

"Be seeing ya', druid," Anishar said with a cheeky wave goodbye, "I look forward to ending your life real soon..."

And with a flash of concealing smoke, the rogue vanished. Falerian shrugged, grinning idiotically at Ellisah's swift approach. "Sorry, can't play now, kitty cat. I'll have to rain check that date. But don't worry; next time we meet, I'll show you where I keep my catnip and teach you how to purr..."

He blew a kiss in the direction of Ellisah's enraged face, drawing a handful of flares from a pouch at his side. With a flick of the wrist, the flares were lit, filling everyone's vision with blinding, white light. By the time eyes refocused and the light dispersed, the hunter was gone.

Ellisah brought one foot down upon the now empty flares in an angry stomp, grinding the remains into the yielding loam venomously.

A tense hush befell the Sentinels, who waited patiently for their new orders.

"We may not be able to track Trisana and her accomplices in Stonetalon," the bitter druidess stated, her indigo locks veiling the twisted expression conquering her features, "But they will have no where to run once they enter Desolace..."

Her hand snapped in the direction of Astranaar, a devilish grin not unlike the fiendish smirk of some serpentine demon darkening her face.

"Have the hippogryph master prepare us rides for Desolace. I have an old acquaintance I need to pay a visit..."

* * *

The solid thud as a thick stack of papers was hurtled into the wall reverberated through the floors of the Arch Druid's quarters.

"What sort of asininity am I forced to attend to now?! I want an explanation and I want it five seconds ago!"

The two warrior women before Staghelm cringed, but, being accustomed to his frequent outbursts, were not surprised by his overly dramatic reaction.

"Arch Druid, we regretfully came to report that Lanrith has esca--"

"SILENCE!" Staghelm interrupted, pounding a fist upon his desk. "I care not for your inadequate excuses. Find him, bring him back and do not stand before me again until you have accomplished this feat! Now... WITHDRAW FROM MY PRESENCE!"

As soon as he was once again alone in his study, Fandral sighed deeply, beginning to retrieve the papers he had carelessly swept onto the floor.

"A druidess who can't apprehend one, harmless girl and guards who can't detain one, grizzled warrior... They've aged me about ten thousand years, dealing with such incompetence. I have far too many pressing matters to lend this my full attention... but if these fools continue with such ineptitude, I will have no choice but to take matters into my own hands instead of waiting for some hero wannabes make me look the fool..."

Staghelm paused a moment in his cleaning. "Heh... hero..."

Gathering up the papers in a bundle, he deposited them on his desk, then returned to his seat. The Arch Druid cleared his throat, scanning the room with a strange look upon his face. Then, without warning, he snatched up his staff from the corner, leapt up on top of his desk, and began singing into his staff.

"I need a hero!  
I'm holding out for at hero 'till the end of the night.  
He's gotta' be strong,  
And he's gotta' be fast,  
And he's gotta' be fresh from the fight.

I need a hero!  
I'm holding out for a hero 'till the morning light.  
He's gotta' be sure,  
And it's gotta' be soon,   
And he's gotta' be larger than life.  
Larger than life...

Doo doo doo doooo doo doo do--" "Umm... Arch Druid Staghelm?"

Staghelm quickly descended from atop his desk, calmly taking a seat before responding. "Hm?"

"The High Priestess wanted me to remind you of your rendezvous with her later on this evening to discuss the matter you both went over earlier," the priestess muttered, unable to look the Arch Druid in the face.

"Tell her I have not forgotten and shall be there at the time we agreed upon."

"I shall do that with haste, Arch Druid. I will take my leave now."

The woman had almost shut the door before being stopped momentarily by Fandral. "Oh and... make certain to knock next time. There is no excuse for disregarding common courtesy."

The priestess bowed from the gap of the doorway. "Yes, Arch Druid. I shall remember to be more courteous next time. My apologies."

She then quietly shut the door, flashing a devious grin to the two Sentinels waiting just beyond the Arch Druid's door.

"You're right. He does sing off key."

Staghelm shook his head at the priestess's departure, straightening up the papers into neat piles.

"Wayward priestesses..."

Plucking one of the parchments from the top of the stack, the Arch Druid began to read, however, two last sentences slipped past his lips before silence once again fell upon his quarters.

"Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat  
It's gonna' take a superman to sweep me off my feet..."

* * *

Coming Soon – Chapter Six: _To Desolace And Beyond_

_Trisana, Lilam and Ferry make their way to Stonetalon and play with some friendly harpies and not so friendly dryads... wait... yeah. The trio will gives those greedy Venture Co. goblins a run for their money. Ellisah heads for Desolace to meet up with a mystery acquaintance of hers. Anishar and Falerian do what they do best... Villainize! Or was it screw things up at the most inopportune moments? Sorry, no more singing Staghelm, sadly, but there will be more deliciously kooky stuff than you can poke a stick at. Stay tuned!_


	12. Pink and Green

**WaFfLe TiMe WiTh LiLaM PrEsEnTs:** _Pink and Green -- _Co-Authored By: Inlaa/Rarshmor__(Lilam's adopted sister in-game)

* * *

Lilam pranced her way through the bustling streets of Stormwind's Trade District, skirting past feet and darting under legs like an intricate dance. It was always crowded thusly in Stormwind, so Lilam didn't mind. In fact, she rather enjoyed the suffocating proximity and bubbly excitement that hovered about the city. It was much more interesting than her home in Kharanos, and there were infinite ways for her to get her pink cropped head into trouble without hardly any effort. 

The Stormwind Guards always managed to provide Lilam with some amusement (mostly in the form of subtle threats) and today was no different.

"Hey."

Lilam reached out with a pudgy finger and poked the man in the knee. The armored man did not flinch. "Hey!" she shouted again, rapping on his plated leg. The man hardly blinked. The gnome, however, was not to be deterred. She sat herself upon the cobblestones and gawked up at the guard with wide, luminous eyes, waiting expectantly. After ten minutes of such intense staring, the man finally caved.

"You're not going to leave until I answer you, are you?"

Lilam shook her head. The guard sighed deep down into his diaphragm.

"What is it now, gnome? What could it possibly be that I did not already answer in the five hundred previous questions you've asked me in the last hour? What could be so pressing, so imperative that you feel the need to distract me from my job, one of the most important in the city, I might add."

Lilam tilted her head and regarded him with confusion. "But all you do all day is stand there and answer questions. If you really think about it hard, I bet someone could train like… a really smart cow to do the same thing. And, he'd give free milk. And he'd be king of the cows."

"Just… ask your question," the man replied past gritted teeth, wondering if he only had a pair of forks, could he stab his ears with enough force and precision to effectively puncture his tormented ear drums.

"Okay, this one's real important, so answer it real good, okay?" Lilam instructed, hopping to her feet. "Why come the fountain over there is empty?"

"Because it is."

"Why come?"

"Because… it's for decoration."

"Kind of a lame decoration if it doesn't even have anything in it. It's just a dumb ol' statue of a fountain that's in the way and doesn't do nothing. Humans are so strange. Hey, you should fill it with Dragonbreath Chili and hand everyone a hat."

The guard held his breath… but just couldn't resist from asking. "… And what's the hat for?"

Lilam's shoulders rose and fell. "I dunno, I just wanna' hat."

The man began searching for the best place to purchase two forks… "You know, there are plenty of other guards in the city. Tons even! Why not go entertain them with your eighty billion pointless questions?"

"Well, I would, but they all musta' had someplace important to get to, 'cause as soon as they saw me, they ran the other way real quick like. I didn't know humans could run that fast in plate."

"… Those cheatin', no good…" the guard began, but quickly thought better of it. Instead, he scanned the ebb and flow of people passing through the district, silently pleading for some sign of salvation from his pink haired tormenter. And then he saw her, standing there so perfectly unaware it almost brought him to tears.

With a devilish gleam in his eye, the man knelt down to look the small warrior in the face, smiling at her lopsidedly. "I have a mission for you," he said with mock emphasis, placing a hand on the gnome's shoulder.

Instantly, Lilam's eyes grew wide and she leaned closer. "What? What is it? I can do it, no problem-o! It's in my motto, 'if Lilam can't do it, there's no point to it… and it was probably already broken before she got there'."

The man blinked. "Right. Anyway, you see that young lady over there? The gnome with the stringy green hair?"

Lilam followed the man's gaze, spotting the gnome loitering in the middle of the street. "Yup! I see her! What do you want me to do? Does she owe you money or something like that? 'Cause I know people. Yup, very nice people. They buy me candy."

The man's face twitched from within his helm. "Look… You see how sad and lonely she looks over there by herself?"

Lilam's gaze traveled to the gnome once more, this time noting the displeased expression deepening her features. "Yeah, she does look kinda' grumpy."

The guard rose from his kneel, folding his arms across his chest. "Your job is to go over there and cheer her up. You're not allowed to come back and pester me until she… er… laughs. Out loud. REALLY loud. So loud I can hear it all the way over here. Understood, warrior?"

Lilam peered at the man skeptically before clicking her heels in a smart salute. "That's easy! I'll be back in a splickety quick second. Don't go anywhere, 'kay? Oh wait, never mind. I forgot your job is just standing there. Well, don't uhh… let your leg fall asleep before I get back! G'bye-o!"

With this said, Lilam bounded off, making a beeline for the lucky gnome. The guard slumped against the brick wall, wondering just how long it would take to train a cow to do his job…

"Just another day," Inlaa mumbled. "Another day with another idiot."

The small, green haired warrior toyed with her sword a while, the blade dangling at her side with her hand against its hilt in a weary manner. She stood in the middle of the Stormwind Trade District, silently wishing that she could just kill half the residents of the fool-infested city and never have to deal with them again.

"By Elune," she muttered below her breath, teeth grinding down on each other, "if I have to deal with one more soul that is -NOT- offering me a job, I swear, I'll... I'll..."

She didn't know what she'd do.

As Lilam closed the distance between her and her target, she got a closer look at the gnome. The thin, frumpy girl was grumbling to herself aloud, a frown creasing her features in a very natural scowl. Lilam studied the green haired gnome closer, noting her plate armor and weaponry. In the conclusion of her covert observation, a dimpled smile broke across Lilam's face and, without hesitation, Lilam approached the gnome with a boisterous greeting.

"H'lo, grumbly gnome! My name's Lilam, the most warriortastical warrior that every warriored warriorly before! What's your name and why are you grumbly mumbling to yourself?"

Inlaa winced, as if recoiling from some strange, sudden pain. She had dealt with enough stupidity for one day, had felt the unquenchable desire to end some mutt's life one too many times today, and suddenly came to a realization. The best way to solve her problems would probably be through force.

The bright and pleasant words of the overly friendly girl- it had to be some little girl, Inlaa knew it- were enough to make her want to scream. Still, forcing back her desire to do so, as well as the need to do something painfully drastic and violent, the gnome turned about with a quivering smile, one any wise individual would see right away as false.

"H-hello," she said, her green eyes half closed in a tired way. "Why are you bothering me and what do you want? Or-..." The warrior stopped, wondering if what she said made any sense, then continued, "If you're just here to chit chat, leave now, please."

Lilam immediately knew that this was a person she'd like. All she had to do was take a gander at the gnome's genuine smile to come to this conclusion. Plus, her warrior senses told her so and they were NEVER wrong.

"Oh, I'm not a bother. And since I'm not a bother, I do no bothering, nope! I'm not here for chit chatting either. I've never even met a chit, so I wouldn't know how one chats. More like gnome chat. You're a warrior like me, right? I can tell! Let's be warrior buddies! Lilam and… Greeny."

Lilam smiled welcomingly into the gnome's face, hopping around like a spring loaded frog. "And then we could warrior EVERYTHING together! Even trees, and shoes, and tables, and bears, especially bears, and fingernails and reds and pants and books..."

Inlaa let out a small sigh. This was not a sigh of relief, nor was it one of pleasure. This was a sigh that spoke of one thing, and one thing alone. Pure and utter mental agony.

"... Warrior...?" The gnome's forehead throbbed, and it throbbed HARD. Her head was hurting so bad, she was starting to think that there was going to be a hole. "Yes... I'm a... warrior... but how do you... warrior... something...?"

Then, Inlaa noticed her fatal mistake. She corrected herself in her next breath, stating, "I don't want to know. Just shut up. Just shut up and leave me alone."

The gnome's hand, once hovering just above her sword, was rubbings the cool metal gauntlets against the searing hot feel of her flesh, but she got the feeling this annoying prick of a gnome wouldn't stop chattering on any time soon. With that dreadful thought in mind, she braced herself for another barrage of words. Lilam gaped at the other warrior incredulously, ignoring her request for solitary respite.

"How do you not know how to warrior something if you're a warrior? You warrior something by being a warrior and… that's pretty much it. Oh, and you gotta' hit things really hard with something sharp or smashy. You must be a new warrior then. I could be your teacher! And the first rule in warrior code is… we don't talk about warrior code. And pink always beats green. ALWAYS. That's just how it is."

Lilam danced excitedly on her feet, grinning crookedly at her less amused companion. "Since we're gonna' be new warrior friends, why don't you introduce yourself, warrior to warrior? If you don't, I'll have to keep calling you Greeny and that's not a warrior name at all, nope."

Faster than Lilam could follow, the red-faced gnome's hand shot out, putting a halt to her bubbly dance as Inlaa grabbed hold of her collar and jerked her forward.

"If you shut up and go pester someone else into insanity, I'll tell you my name. Have we got a deal?"

Lilam blinked into the warrior's face, able to count the freckles speckled across her cheeks.

With a nod, Lilam replied, "Sure. We got a deal, Greeny."

Inlaa released Lilam with a shove, releasing a sigh from the depths of her diaphragm. Her pale, viridian eyes seemed to peer past the pink haired warrior, focusing on everything, yet nothing.

"My name… is Inlaa."

And without further discourse, the gnome turned with the grinding of plate armor, leaving Lilam to address unanswered questions to her retreating back. Lilam scratched the back of her head, tilting her head at a curious angle.

"What a nice girl…"

Lilam blinked. "Hey… She didn't tell me her last name! And we had a deal! A warrior deal! Hey! Outlaw… Inler… uhh... Iny! Wait up! And I was just kidding about the pink beating green thing! Really! Smeeze… how does everyone run so fast in plate?"


	13. To Desolace And Beyond

_(Kyanr and Alethea or 'Thea, as Lilam calls her, are characters belonging to my friends and are being used and mentioned with their permission)_

**Chapter Six: To Desolace And Beyond**

* * *

"How come you can talk Common like Trissy and I, Perry? Aren't you supposed to talk that Gutter Talk all gutter-like and stuff?"

Lilam turned about to face the brooding mage, slowing her pace as she continued walking, albeit backwards. Ferry's hollow gaze roamed the gnome's face briefly, the air becoming stagnant with black odium. Lilam appeared unaware, donning a lopsided smirk at the Forsaken's curious stare.

Finally, Ferry's shoulders rose and fell in the involuntary habit of a sigh. There was hardly any point in trying to intimidate the warrior, save for his own amusement purposes.

"For the last time, you brain-addled halfling, my name is Ferry. Fair-ree. Its two syllables! Two! Just like murder, strangle, carnage, butcher, destroy, mangle, slaughter... you get the picture. And your language is not at all that difficult to learn once one procures a human larynx.

"Of course, I had to persuade a human to participate in the transplant. He didn't quite agree at first, but after the procedure, he was a lot quieter. I'm actually really grateful to the guy; I've finally been able to perfect my hunting call."

Ferry cleared his pilfered throat, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"For the Alliance!"

One of Trisana's eyebrows perked as she inquired, "And what exactly is that call supposed to help you hunt?"

The mage shrugged. "Anything stupid enough to answer the call. Seems to incite some sort of suicide response in Alliance pawns--"

With sword and shield aloft, Lilam began to charge forward, shouting, "For the Alliance!", then, realizing there was nothing to charge, raced back to Ferry.

"Wait, what I am 'For the Allianceing' for?"

The Forsaken shot a look at Trisana. "... I rest my case."

The warrior's weapons lowered in confusion. "For the... Alliance?"

"Every time you open your mouth, it reminds me of this friend I used to have a very long ago."

The confusion in Lilam's eyes deepened, but she smiled, her sword tapping the side of her boot.

"That's good! Happy to uhh... remind you."

"Yeah, we were pretty close. Fond of playing pranks on each other too. Like when I ripped out his spine through his eye socket. At least _I_thought it was funny. Him, not so much."

Ferry paused to stroke his chin, a distant glaze forming a veil over his eyes while he continued to look down at Lilam. "Good times, good times..."

Trisana retreated further into her hood to mask the repulse she felt, steering the conversation to something less morbid.

"It's beginning to get dark. We should find somewhere to rest for the night."

Indeed, twilight's somber hues had begun to challenge the sun's reign, creating an epic clash of colors in the wide expanse above.

"What about Stonetalon Peak? Are there not woods there where we might conceal ourselves for the night?" Ferry suggested rather plainly, picking at a loose thread hanging from the sleeve of his robe. "Dryads, Keepers of the Grove and Treants also inhabit those woods. Just perfect for an outdoor barbeque; walking firewood and venison everywhere you turn."

Lilam scrunched her nose. "Dryads, Keepers and Treats? You mean those moony elf lookin' deer things with the walky tree people? I have a bad history with walky tree people in that big moony elf city; they aren't always careful where they walk..."

Trisana let a hand linger atop Lilam's curly head, attempting to calm her fears. "Don't worry, Lilam. My parents told me stories about Dryads, Keepers and Treats. They are our allies, a wondrous and majestic people."

"... That also happen to taste good smothered in barbecue sauce," Ferry added, slipping Trisana a sly, lip-less grin.

The girl was not amused, but Lilam was already tugging her hand, pulling her along. "C'mon! It'll get dark on us if we don't hurry up! An' unless we can use both yours and Carry's glowy eyes to light the way, we should get a move on."

Allowing herself to be dragged ahead, Trisana nodded, leveling her eyes on the dusky horizon ahead. And Ferry, not wanting to be left out, could not refrain from being part of the moment.

"And I'll bring the fixins."

"Goblins..."

The word was spat forcefully past Lilam's lips, the vehemence of the statement lingering in the air.

"You know, you don't have to say everything that pops into that tiny, pink head of yours, Lady Glaringly Obvious," Ferry quipped scathingly, "In fact, if you feel the urge to speak, why not just ram a steel rod through my skull instead? Its practically the same sensation."

Lilam swung her head up at the disgruntled Forsaken, giving him an odd look. "Who's Lady Glaringly Obvious?"

The Forsaken had already turned, removing himself from the gnome's presence. "... You know what, I'll just go find that rod myself..."

Lilam pushed away from the tree she was spying from, looking to Trisana as Ferry leaned wearily against a solid wall of rock.

"Trissy! I gots a plan! Much better than my bear plan, yep."

Drawing her sword, the gnome ushered Trisana off to the side, clearing a space for herself and giving the girl a better view.

"Okay," the warrior began, the tip of her blade scrawling indecipherable designs in the dusty topsoil, "Here's Lilam's Super Nifty Goblin Gobbler Smashy Slashy Face Plan. I just came up with the name. Kinda' catchy, huh?"

Lilam indicated to one cluster of circles etched into the clay. "I'll take on the fifty or so greedy goblins on the right." Her sword moved to a grouping of squares. "Trissy can take the fifty or so greedy goblins in the middle." The blade rested amongst a collection of X's. "And Terry can take the last fifty or so on the left."

Her "captivated" audience did little but stare at her for a moment as Lilam beamed, drawing in more circles in her assigned group for effect.

Trisana caught Ferry about to speak and quickly interjected. "Umm... Lilam that's... a wonderfully optimistic plan, but I think we might need something a bit more... realistic."

Lilam glanced down at her "battle plan", studying it with the narrowing of her eyes before nodding slowly, as if coming to a realization. "You're right, Trissy. This plan is pretty silly, now that I look at it better. I should have triangles, not circles, for Gnomeregan's sake! Triangles are more pointier."

Ferry was already in mid-head shake in a mixture of irritation and self pity.

"Ow... my sanity..."

Trisana snapped her eyes sharply at the mage, folding her arms across her chest scornfully. "And so I assume you have a better plan?"

The mage's phosphorescent stare flickered to the girl, a nefarious curl twisting his smile. "Indeed I do. My plan is rather simple: Toss the gnome amongst the goblins as a diversion and use you as a body shield to escape in the ensuing chaos, then be on my way."

Lilam scratched the back of her head in mild confusion, while Trisana silently reprimanded the man with a deep frown. Ferry merely shrugged with the rise and fall of his bony shoulders.

"What? You only like her plan better because she had a visual aid. But I can draw a crude outline for my plan too; just hold on a second..."

_Four minutes and an elaborate sand drawing later..._

"You see, and here's where the goblins are tearing the gnome apart, limb by limb. With their saw arms. Did I tell you that in my drawing, the goblins had saw arms? Well they do. And they have fangs. Because fangs are cool. But anyway, as I was saying, see and while the gnome is being torn apart, guess what that is right there. Just guess. Nah, I want to tell you. It's a devilsaur! See how he's sort of gnawing on the gnome's head _while _she's being ripped apart? Now I know what you're thinking. 'But Ferry, how would a devilsaur get all the way to Stonetalon?'. I'll tell you. Huge, flaming wings. Because everything is much cooler on fire, you know? Okay, continuing on..."

Lilam nudged Trisana with her elbow, whispering, "Trissy... are you gonna' stop him anytime soon? He's been going on and on and on for like, four minutes or something."

Trisana shook her head slightly, whispering back, "Well I was going to... but I think it's best we just let him get it all out..."

The gnome's pink cropped head nodded in agreement. "I s'pose you're right. He_does _look happy... in a scary kinda' way. Is it normal for him to be foaming at the mouth like tha--?"

Instead of the final syllable, a surprised squeal concluded Lilam's sentence as she was unexpectedly lifted from her feet and into the air.

"Hwaaaah! I'm being gnome-napped!"

"Erm... not quite. Hello, Lilam... long time no see," chuckled a deep, baritone from behind the squirming warrior.

Another squeal pealed the air, but this time, it was a squeal of pleasant surprise. "Ky! What are you doin' here, ya' silly talky cow!"

The fear frozen on Trisana's face melted in relief as Lilam appeared to recognize the tauren who had seemingly appeared out of no where. Even Ferry, who had not been concerned in the least, glanced up to assess Lilam's bipedal, bovine friend "Ky".

"You know just... being Kyanr. What are you doing all the way out here?" Kyanr set Lilam down gently at his side, smiling down at the top of her head.

Lilam matched his smile, craning her neck to speak to her long time acquaintance. "Nothin'. I mean, something, but I'm not in no trouble, if that's what you were thinking. Nope, none at all. Don't tell 'Thea though! Yes, don't tell her I'm not in no trouble."

The hunter gave her a knowing look, his gaze falling on Trisana and Ferry as well as the goblins in the distance. He crouched down to Lilam's height, facing her once more.

"You need to... get past those Venture Trading Co. goblins, huh?"

Lilam hesitated, not sure what she would be admitting to depending on her answer. 'Thea would not be a happy paladin knowing she was in trouble... yet again. Finally, after weighing the consequences of a "talking to" versus being stuck sandwiched between goblins and a couple of crazy, vengeful night elves, Lilam replied, "Yes please."

Kyanr's grin widened. He hoisted Lilam onto his shoulders, beckoning for the other two to come closer. "I got a plan... that just might work."

Lilam poked the tauren in the side of the head. "It doesn't involve leaping off no mountains or nothin' this time, does it?"

Kyanr laughed boisterously, tilting his head to wink at the gnome. "Nah... not this time. But... there's always next time, right?"

Trisana had already moved closer to the amiable tauren, but Ferry was still hovering over his "masterpiece".

"I still think my plan could work. You know, we shouldn't just overlook it until we've _at least_ tried it."

The hunter merely reached out with a massive arm and grasped the mage by the shoulder, drawing him into the huddle. Forcing their heads to bow low, Kyanr grinned crazily at the trio, speaking in a low, excited whisper.

"What we're going to do... boys and girls... is steal us... a pair of Shredders."

Lilam's palm smacked into her forehead. "'Thea's never gonna' let us outta' her sight never again..."

"What we need... is a way to stop the Shredder and kick the goblin out..." Kyanr's furry brows came together to form a V, marking his state of deep thought.

"You know," Ferry began, picking at his teeth in a lazy manner, "Last time someone got the bright idea to prance their fleshy meat bodies before a Goblin Shredder of Saw-Related Dismemberment, he ended up like this--"

The mage pointed a spindly finger at his face (or lack thereof).

"Bald and ugly?" Lilam peeked around from the other side of Kyanr, her face radiating a goofy smile innocently.

Ferry's finger drooped. "... I meant dead."

The gnome leaned back further to better see the Forsaken, grasping Ky's tail to keep herself balanced.

"Maybe that's 'cause they didn't know goblins as good as me. Everyone knows that the weak spot on every goblin machine is it's tri-lateral synchronogyro flixzergidget. Goblins are best at blowing stuff up, not building stuff."

Everyone suddenly fell silent. Lilam felt three pairs of eyes burning holes of bewildered shock into her face and blinked back at her companions in confusion.

"What? My mum and dad are engineers... They talk about goblin machines all the time. Only, they don't use words as nice as mine... But I know for certainly sure that if you hit a shredder just right, it'll stop working for a sec or two."

Kyanr knelt down before the rambling gnome, resting a hand that nearly four times as large as her own atop her head. "And... you know where that tri-lateral whatever is?"

Receiving a brief nod from Lilam, the hunter rose to his hooves, stroking his chin thoughtfully. His eyes wandered slowly about the scene until finally resting on Ferry.

"You."

Ferry perked an eyebrow (which could have been little more than a fuzzy line of moss above his eye).

"You're a mage... right?"

"Well... that is the formal title, I suppose. Mr. Freeze works just as well. Nothing more lovely than a gnome on ice. Am I right? Slap me some bone on that one!"

He lifted his hand for a high five, baring his yellowed teeth at the tauren in a smug smirk. Kyanr did not appear amused. The mage lowered his hand, the almost always present scowl returning in a blink of an eye.

"Maybe down low on the rebound?" Ferry continued with just a hint of hope still lingering.

The hunter reposition his gun from one shoulder to the other, clearing his throat loudly with a heavy lidded stare.

"You know, I've met mindless ghouls with a more developed sense of humor... "

There was a mirthful gleam in Kynar's eyes as he replied, "And now... I can say the same. Anyway... I'm going to bring the shredder here. Use some sort of... ice spell to keep it from going anywhere. Then, while I'm distracting the shredder, _you _are going to wait until Lilam gets the shredder to stop and polymorph the goblin inside so it doesn't go all crazy with a sheep for an operator... any questions?"

Something very quick and fleeting passed over Ferry's face, but his reply came just as measured and devoid of emotion as usual.

"Do I look like some kind of magician? Someone here for your entertainment? Someone you can say 'teehee Ferry make him into a fuzzy wuzzy sheep'? Yeah... and I also do kids parties. I am afraid Mr. Freeze does not 'sheep' anyone. I'm the ice guy. That's my thing. Nothing says you're not some silly magician more than a spear of ice sticking out from your bellybutton. As they say, the Iceman cometh... bringing popsicles, impaling doom flavor, my fav."

Kynar didn't miss a beat, shrugging his shaggy shoulders. "Fine. Then you distract the shredder... and I'll polymorph the goblin. Let me know... how that works. I'll be over there..."

Ferry growled something under his breath darkly, wrapping his cape about himself and stalking off to the side, muttering to himself.

The hunter and the two girls exchanged looks.

"Are you sure... he's a friend, little one, and not... a foe?" Kyanr looked down at the gnome by his side with a perplexed expression. Lilam's curls swung back and forth as she nodded, tugging on his tail playfully.

"He's just shy. He says that people just need to warm up to him... but that normally takes too long, so he just sets them on fire."

The tauren stole a glance at Trisana. She shrugged, offering him an apologetic look.

"Right... anyway," Kyanr said, un-strapping his gun and hefting it into his hands, "I'll... be back. You know that plan... right?"

He was answered with two confident affirmations. The hunter cast one last look at the brooding form of Ferry before edging towards the goblin camp.

"What... what should I do?" Trisana inquired quietly, feeling somewhat useless.

"You can... make sure no sneaky bears try and sneak up on me when I'm not looking." Seeing the expression on Trisana's face, Lilam added, "It's an important job! Who knows what sorts of sneaky bear villainy they can cause when my back is turned for just a splickity quick second? Lots, that's what! And absolutely no sneaky bear is getting his three claw paws of sneakiness on a muffin on _my _watch. It would be a kitty-strophe. Like a catastrophe, only a little bit smaller."

Covering a laugh with a polite cough, Trisana stepped off to the side away from Lilam and Ferry, calling out behind her, "Thanks, Lilam. I think I'll do that over here then."

She had taken cover not even a minute before Kyanr came barreling down the path, a towering construct of blade and steel fast on his hooves. The goblin operating the machine could not help but see Lilam's pink hair, and he began to slow his pursuit, immediately becoming suspicious. However, he was not allowed to turn in retreat before the shredder's legs came to an abrupt halt, stuck fast in it's tracks as crystalline shards of ice burst forth from the ground and clenched tightly to the cool metal.

A thin wisp of cooled air passed by Ferry's lipless mouth as he watched the gnome warrior hobble her way around behind the immobile shredder, a spinning saw blade just barely missing her as she rolled to avoid getting more than a haircut.

Kyanr jerked himself to the side as the buzzing blade swept by, leveling his gun. The shot was true, taken with practiced, careful aim, but the goblin blocked the impeding bullet with a mechanical arm, sneering at the hunter's failed attempt. Wedging her sword into the back of the shredder's right leg, Lilam managed to pop off an inconspicuous plated cover, revealing a complex jumble of blinking cathodes and tangled wires.

"Now if only I knew what a tri-lateral synchronogyro flixzergidget looked like..."

_I sure hope Lilam at least knows what a tri-laterwhatsitcalled looks like..._ Trisana thought to herself silently, peering out from the safety of the tree. _So far, so good. But what about..._ Her luminescent eyes flickered over to Ferry. He had not moved an inch since his initial attack. Feather-like flutters of icy fear made her shiver slightly, the familiar beginnings of panic beginning to surface.

_Why isn't he doing anything?!_

The ear ringing explosions of air and gunpowder pierced the air in rapid succession, the distinct tinny peal of bullets striking metal following after like the steady drumming of raindrops. Lilam leaning halfway into the panel slot as Kyanr wrestled with a mechanical arm that had a hold of his gun.

"Ooo, shiny!"

The tiny warrior exclaimed, spotting a "shiny" within the forest of gadgetry. It wasn't so much "shiny" as "glowy", giving off a brilliant shade of purple light that was just the right amount of "shinyglowy" to pique a gnome's curiosity.

_Gotta' poke, gotta' poke, gotta' poke, gotta' poke, gotta' poke, gotta' poke, gotta' poke..._

Lilam stretched as far as her arms could reach, determined to poke whatever was producing such a poke-able light. With just the slightest brush of her index finger, a grin from ear to ear spread across the gnome's face as she whispered triumphantly to herself, "Poke."

Simultaneously, there was a squeal, a curse and a sigh of relief.

Lilam furiously tried to smooth down her statically charged curls which were floating about her head in an airy dance. The goblin in the shredder pounded at the controls, finally exiting out the side with a flying leap. Kyanr blinked at the now still saw blade inches from his face before wrenching his gun free from the metal claw.

"Gnome!"

Lilam paused and turned, looking directly into the face of a very angry, generally displeased goblin. The cornered gnome had little more to say then "Whoops?" and force herself to smile crookedly at the green, snarling face.

The goblin proved to be lacking in the right words as well, managing a strangled, "Why you--!" before lurching forward, drawing an axe from his side and poising it high above his head. He only managed two steps before the butt of a gun smashed into the back of his head, knocking him out cold.

"Nice timing... little one," Kyanr said fondly with the shake of his head.

"I knew what I was doing the whole time. You had nothing to worry about, Ky, I wasn't going to let you down!" Lilam stepped over the prone figure of the goblin, hopping over to the tauren.

"I believe you... Too bad we cannot say that about everyone."

At this, both redirected their gaze to the forsaken attempting to be very interested in his nonexistent fingernails. Trisana stepped out from behind the tree, giving Ferry an accusing stare as well. With the intensity of three angry stares boring into him, the mage finally looked up, seeming to be surprised.

"Huh?"

"Why didn't you polymorph the goblin? You just stood there... " Trisana questioned, folding her arms as she waiting for the response. Ferry remained silent.

Kyanr frowned. "I think... you should answer the girl. Even the little one here helped out... while you just stood there."

There was a flash of animosity in the forsaken's eye sockets, a seething abhorrence that shadowed his rather featureless face. "I answer to none but the twisted chaos of darkness that is the Nether. And from where I'm standing, you're looking mighty non-Nethery."

The mage found himself staring down the barrel of Kyanr's gun.

"Look again."

Ferry barked in laughter, which was more like sound of sandpaper being scrapped against sandpaper.

"And I'm supposed to be frightened of your little popgun?" The unearthly glow shimmering within his sockets appeared to darken in black flames, his voice dipping inhumanly low.

"I vanquish the unbreakable will of the elements themselves, conquering them and making them mere pawns at my disposal as they succumb to my unyielding resolve, my every whim, my every command. And you _dare_to threaten _me _with mortal playthings?!"

Lilam raised her hand, flashing the ring on her finger. "I do!"

Ferry seemed to freeze, his gaze jumping from the gnome to the hunter. And then he slouched forward, seeming to deflate in an instant. "... And I'm being held hostage by a talking rodent with a piece of jewelry. ... I hate my unlife..."

He rubbed the back of his neck almost nervously, his gaze lingering about the ground uncharacteristically.

"I told you in the beginning that I don't do sheep."

Lilam raised her hand again, not really sure for what reason, though. "Why not?"

"It's... a long story."

Kyanr shouldered his gun, but leveled a look in Ferry's direction. "Then give us... the short version."

The mage began playing with the tip of his dagger unconsciously, shuffling uneasily on his feet.

"I... don't like... sheep."

There was barely a moment of silence that passed before Lilam burst out, "You mean you're _afraid _of _sheep_?" She clamped her hands over her mouth to keep the giggles inside of her from escaping.

Ferry shot her an irritated look, explaining, "I'm not afraid of sheep... per se. I just don't like the way they look. Gives me the creeps. The way their eyes are all beady... like a doll's eyes. All that... fluffy wool. Those eerily cute lamb faces..."

Lilam was now shaking from the effort of trying not to laugh. Ever so slightly, Kyanr nudged Lilam, whispering, "Is he... you know..."

The warrior blinked in confusion, her mirth coming to a pause. "Is he what?"

"You know..." The tauren briefly put his hands his hips.

"Yes... he has hips."

"You know, I'm standing right here and can see what you're trying to tell the gnome," Ferry stated dryly, tapping his dagger in his hand. "And I am not "that way". If i was, then I would have told you that those Timber Wolf paw gloves and those Panther leggings didn't match. Uh uhh moo-friend. That's a major fashion faux 'paw'."

There was another silence... and a lot of staring without blinking.

"What? It was a joke! Oh, the pink haired midget can say something cute and you all yuk it up, but when the dead guy cracks a funny you're all like 'this is disturbing and uncomfortable'."

Kyanr, Trisana and Lilam remained staring.

"... I hate you all."

His gaze fell on Lilam.

"Especially you."

Even Lilam, incessant chatterbox of infinite rambling nonsense had nothing to say.

Ferry frowned with as much effort and force as he could muster, bowing curtly. "Don't worry folks I'll be here all week. I also do children's parties. I provide the jokes, you provide the snacks... I mean children."

"As special as this moment has been, and I'm sure it's an effort to keep your eyes off this sexy piece of Forsaken beefcake, but shouldn't we be going sometime before the next Sundering?"

Quickly recollecting his wits, Kyanr agreed, stating, "He's right... at least about that last part. We need to go."

He moved to the Shredder, hauling himself up into the mechanical golem and after fumbling with the controls, managed to get the machine up and running.

"I call shotgun!" Lilam announced as the tauren reached to help her up.

"I suppose that's okay..." Trisana said hesitantly, climbing up after her. She immediately balked, seeing Lilam reach for Kyanr's gun, which he had propped beside himself. The gnome made a small noise of disappointment as Trisana snatched the weapon from her hands just as she picked it up.

"Lilam, shotgun doesn't literally mean... never mind. Just... sit somewhere you won't fall out." Trisana shook her head, watching Lilam sit down obediently before smiling up at her innocently. She withheld a sigh.

_This gnome... is going to be the death of me..._

"Isn't this comfy cozy," Ferry muttered to himself, squeezing into the Shredder compartment with the others.

Lilam's eyes glistened with youthful mischief as she smirked roguishly at the grumbling mage, bleating, "It's not so baaaaaaad."

Ferry shot her a look that would have struck a full grown ogre dead upon impact, but the warrior was no longer even looking his way, too busy trying to discreetly scoot her way to "shotgun" without Trisana noticing. Kyanr shifted gears, glancing over his shoulders at the others.

"Alright... hold on."

They took off with a violent lurch, nearly launching Lilam, who hadn't taken the 'hold on' literally, out the back and in the trail of dust behind.

"Are we supposed to be heading directly _into_ the goblins?!" Trisana shouted over the blistering wind assault, her hood ripped back and revealing moon misted eyes widened with fear. The hunter didn't answer, but rather laughed boisterously, smashing into the goblin camp in a flurry of steel and grinding gears.

The expressions of horror and slack jawed shock were priceless, and Ferry silently cursed not having any photo taking device on him at the time to capture the moment. After a hectic minute of tearing through the camp, Kyanr spotted what he was searching for, jerking to the right as he spun the Shredder 180 degrees. Barreling forward at breakneck speed, the Shredder finally came to a skidding stop in a violent spray of topsoil, jolting everyone forward.

"This is where you all get off," Kyanr said, turning in his seat to face the three behind him. A Shredder identical to theirs was parked before them.

Trisana pried her finger from the metal hand guard as Lilam popped up, hair plastered about her face, inquiring, "What about you, Ky?"

The hunter patted her head with a paternal fondness, replying, "I'm going to lead them away... so you guys can escape. Don't worry about me... I've gotten through worse. Stay safe, little one."

He looked up at Trisana, adding, "And you as well. Be safe."

His eyes met with Ferry's. "And you... touch one hair on Lilam's pink head... and you'll be adding 'gun toting tauren' to your list of fears alongside sheep."

"I wasn't that fond of cows to begin with, thank you for asking. It's hard to take tauren seriously when all you can think of when you see one is 'talking burger'."

Ferry's eyes narrowed, his gaze heavy with just as much warning and threat as Kyanr's, but he was first to break eye contact from the stare down, lowering himself from the Shredder with the rustling of his robes.

"Thank you for your help," Trisana said in passing, exiting the Shredder after Ferry.

"Don't die or nothing, Ky. 'Thea wouldn't be too happy with that. See ya'!" Lilam saluted the hunter with as much honor and dignity her tiny frame could muster, then clambered down the side of the Shredder, with a little help from Trisana.

Kyanr watched the trio scurry to the other Shredder for a breath's span of time before turning his own and facing the swarm of angry green faces approaching swiftly, weapons high.

_And I wouldn't want 'Thea" to not be happy..._, Kyanr thought to himself, just before losing himself to the fray. _That hammer of hers does leave a decent size bruise right between the horns..._

"Run! Go! Get to da Shredda'!"

Lilam and Trisana turned to each other, then ever so slowly back at Ferry.

"Why are you shouting? We're already in the Shredder..." Trisana asked somewhat hesitantly, not sure she really wanted to know the answer.

The Forsaken shrugged impassively. "I felt the moment needed to be more dramatic."

Lilam managed to save Trisana from coming up with some sensible response to the mage's nonchalant reply, by proclaiming "I call control of the saw arm!"

"NO!" was Ferry and Trisana's unison reply.

The mage cleared his throat, not wanting to even think of the sheer, unbridled destruction the gnome was capable of. "Who knows how to work this thing?" he pondered, studying the controls with a blank expression.

The eager warrior raised her hands above her head, waving them about with fierce determination. "I do!"

Again, Ferry and Trisana answered simultaneously, probably sharing the same Lilam doomsday thoughts. "NO!"

Pouting, the gnome sat down gloomily, addressing the other two in an "it's not fair" tone, "You two sound just like my mum and dad."

"Lilam..."

"... shut up and never say or think of anything even remotely like that ever again," Ferry finished for Trisana, ignoring the poisonous glare she was directing towards him for interjecting. "In any case, I'll drive. Neither of you has even driven a mount before. It's a lot harder than it looks. I mean it's not like you can just save your gold and buy the years and years of arduous training it takes to competently ride a mount--"

Skirting past the mage, Trisana took the seat before he could protest. Having Ferry behind the controls of a potential death machine was almost as frightening a thought as having Lilam behind the controls. After a moment of fumbling and embarrassing awkwardness, she managed to start the engine. With a shaky, albeit triumphant smile, Trisana edged the Shredder forward, faster as she gained confidence until Kyanr and the logging camp were but a speck on the horizon.

"Why are we leaving the Shredder? Using it could cut our travel time in half, I'm sure!"

Trisana tilted her head slightly in bewilderment, her hands lingering near the control panel even as Ferry wrapped his cloak about him and descended from the metal golem. He landed in a cat-like crouch, pausing to pat himself free of dust before addressing the girl's question.

"Two reasons. One, if the gnome pokes me one more time, I swear by the ever twisted Nether I will do something anatomically impossible with that finger so horribly grotesque that even an Abomination would cringe and say, 'that just isn't right'."

Lilam was much more interested in why there was a knife size slit in the middle of her pack to hear the forsaken's complaint, and in hindsight, Trisana was relieved.

"Uhh... right. And reason number two?"

Eyes drifting skyward to the black night and violet twilight merging into one up above, the mage pulled a hand though his moss matted hair in a rather annoyed fashion.

"Because, fleshling, we stole something shiny from those goblins. And anyone who knows anything about goblins is that stealing from them, particularly if the item is of the shiny variety, equates to spitting in their mother's face... assuming they haven't already sold her for some worthless trinket yet.

In other words, despite Sir Milksalot's efforts to buy us time to escape, rest assured, the goblins will come looking for their machine. The Shredder leaves a glaringly obvious trail any half wit could follow. And, despite their stature, let a few of those pointy nosed boogers swarm you and it's over. That answer your extremely stupid question?"

Trisana was already half-way out of the Shredder, dragging Lilam along behind her. "Yeah, thanks," she muttered sarcastically, adjusting her dress that had managed to twist itself awkwardly at the waist.

"Come on, this way!" Lilam shouted as she darted ahead, motioning for the other two to follow. "We're almost at Stonetalon Peak, yup! Race you to the top!"

A smile was all Trisana offered in response to that, while Ferry actually slowed his pace, hoping to put as much distance between himself and the gnome as possible. That is, until Lilam added, "First one there gets taken off Lilam's To-Poke list."

With speed only able to be described with an equation and a long string of numbers, Ferry, or rather the blur that was formally Ferry, was already more than half-way up the side of the mountain barely moments after the last word left the gnome's mouth. Trisana and Lilam were left blinking incredulously at the thick trail of dust left in Ferry's wake.

"He didn't let me finish," Lilam complained to Trisana as they began their trek up the mountain at a much more reasonable pace. "First one there gets taken off Lilam's To-Poke list... and added to Lilam's Must-Poke-Every-Two-Seconds-Of-Their-Existence list."

A shrug and a shake of the head later, Lilam had dismissed the mage's hastiness as Ferry being Ferry and began skipping along the path, determined to outrun the encroaching night and reach the summit before all became veiled in darkness.

* * *

And Lilam always kept her word (mostly). By the time Trisana finally piped up, Lilam had already surpassed her highest poking record and Ferry was in the process of determining the best possible angle one would insert someone's finger into their own spleen.

"Lilam, why don't you pick where we'll camp for the night?" the girl suggested rather hurriedly, noting the murderous glare in Ferry's goldspun eyes.

Stopped in mid-poke, Lilam nodded excitedly, exclaiming, "Righty-o! Lemme' see..."

She dashed about like a pink spinning top, finally settling on a location that looked exactly like the other fifteen she had previously disregarded. The warrior managed to gather an armful of sticks for a small fire, while Trisana unpacked some of the food graciously given to them by Liladris. Trisana had not realized how weary and fatigued she was until she was finally able to sit and rest her aching feet. Completely disregarding Trisana's chiding against it, Lilam decided to forgo any actual food and dive right into the still moist slices of cake, eager to demonstrate her horrid eating habits to her companions.

"I know you don't eat ordinary food, Harry, but cake is _extra_ordinary! Want some? If not, we got other stuff from that nice lady you might like," Lilam offered with a smile sprinkled with crumbs.

Eyes dazzlingly bright in the fire's warm glow, Ferry glanced briefly at the proffered sweet, then back at the grinning gnome.

"Depends. Are you finished with that yet?" He pointed not at the cake, but rather at Lilam.

"Finished with what?"

The mage allowed himself a devious smirk. "Your face."

The confusion on Lilam's face was undeniable. "Umm... not yet... I don't think..."

Trisana shook her head wordlessly, covering her mouth as a deep sigh became an unexpected yawn. She began untying her cloak absentmindedly, laying it lengthwise across her lap. Her hands lingered on the garment, her moonlight tresses forming a veil and obscuring her face as she bowed her head forward.

_No... not my cloak. Lanrith's..._

"Hey Trissy..."

Her head snapped up almost guiltily, spotting Lilam polishing her sword with the cheesecloth her cake had been wrapped in.

"Why are you going to Feral-las anyway? Do you know someone there?"

Although Trisana wanted to sound confident and sure of herself, to her disappointment, her voice came out smaller and quieter than usual.

"Well I don't really know her... but before I left Darnassus, my father told me to travel to Feralas and find someone named Lariel. That was all the information I was given. But my father couldn't have possibly imagined that all this would happen... that rogue and hunter... my sister... I'm not even sure if I'll even make it to Feralas, much less if this Lariel can keep me like my father had planned. I don't want anyone else hurt because of me."

Without realizing it, her fingers clutched at the cloak involuntarily, her eyes misty and distant.

Of course, Lilam wasn't without an encouraging word. "We'll make it to Fera-lass no problem-o!" she said firmly. "We've made it this far fine and dandy. Plus also, maybe that Lariel person can help teach you some druidy stuff."

Trisana shook her head patiently, beginning to carefully fold the cloak into a neat square. "I'm afraid she can't help. I can't become a druid. I'm not a kal'dorei so I can't--"

"What?! That's it?" Lilam interrupted, the cloth falling from her hands as she gave the girl one of her famous "are you serious?!" looks.

Trisana was puzzled by the warrior's sudden outburst. "What do you mean?"

Eyes gleaming passionately, Lilam rose to her feet, feeling a speech coming on.

"You said that you can't become a druid person. Who said you can't?"

The question demanded an answer, to which Trisana found herself taken aback by Lilam's commanding tone. "Uh, well, the Arch Druid and--"

"But it's what you really wanna' be, right?"

After a hesitant pause, Trisana finally bowed her head briefly for a nod.

"Then go be a druidy person! If there's something you really, really, really wanna' do, don't let the word 'can't' stop you. Who ever heard of a word stopping anyone from doing anything? People tell me I can't do things all the time. 'Lilam, you can't be a warrior, warrioring isn't for gnomes'. 'Lilam, you can't mixed those two potions, you'll blow up the house again'. Or 'Lilam, you can't dry the silverware in the fireplace, you'll set the house on fire again'.

But if I listened to every person who told me I can't, I wouldn't know now that I can. Even if you're the only one who thinks you can, that's at least one person right? I never heard a can't I couldn't or a don't I didn't. I knew I wanted to be a warrior since forever, even if no one else thought I could, but I've been warrioring ever since I picked up my first sword. If you really wanna' be a druidy type person, then go for it! After all, a can't is just a can with one too many letters, right?"

Trisana tried to speak... but nothing came out.

"Wonderful, now step down from your soap box. I'm inspiration-intolerant and becoming increasingly nauseated." Ferry said dryly with a lackluster applaud.

The gnome scrunched her nose, diverting her attention from the still recovering Trisana. "What sort of person makes a box out of soap?"

"The kind of person who is most likely planning on beating you senseless with it and enjoys the fresh scent of springtime while pummeling the life out of gnomes with mouths too big for their own good."

Feeling oddly full of inspirational advice, Lilam pointed the end of her sword at Ferry which came dangerously close to severing his jaw clear off his face. With an apologetic smile, Lilam asked, "What about you, boney man? Why do you want my super awesomely stuck-on-my-finger-good-and-tight ring?"

Batting the sword away from his face, lest the gnome have an "oopsie" and impale him through the skull (being killed by a pink haired gnome was probably second only to being Omen's chew toy on his list of deaths to avoid), the forsaken crossed his arms over his chest, his gaze drawn to the immovable jeweled circlet.

"Before you two little snits came and ruined everything, which I might add, I plan on making you suffer excruciatingly until the end of time for, I had big plans for that jewel. It took me years of planning and laying low; building the trust of the Dark Strand just so I could get closer to getting my hands on the gem that held secret to the Dark Strand's power.

With it, I would have figured how to use it to make the Dark Strand submit to my will and become my own personal dark army. All I wanted was incontestable power, merciless slaughter with a little mayhem on the side, and the satisfaction that somewhere out there, a kid was wetting himself at the sound of my name... was that so wrong?"

Awkward silence.

"I'm gonna' go find more wood so we don't run out tonight," Lilam announced; awkward moments of silence tended to make her antsy and she wasn't sure what encouragement to give Ferry, given his... strange ambitions.

Trisana had stood and was retying her cloak. "I think I'll go look to see if there's any water nearby so we can at least wash up tomorrow before heading out."

Sheathing her sword, the pink haired warrior assessed her friend's face curiously. "Should I go with you?"

Trisana shook her head. "No, I'll be fine. I won't venture far."

The part of Lilam that was a warrior wasn't exactly comfortable with Trisana going off by herself, regardless if the threats in the surrounding area were minimal. But the part of Lilam that was a considerate friend figured that the girl probably wanted to have some time to herself and reflect on all that's happened until now. So Lilam nodded, shouldering her shield onto her back.

"Right-o. Jerry and I are only a shout away. Oh, and think about what I said, 'kay? Shouldn't let a sugar fueled speech like that go to waste."

The hood came over Trisana's head, covering her moonsilk hair. "I will. Try not to get into any trouble."

Lilam lingered long enough to watch her hooded companion disappear from sight, then pranced off on her own, leaving Ferry to watch the fire. Alone at last, the mage settled into a more comfortable sitting position, burying his arms in his sleeves as he gazed into the fire, seeming to be deep in thought...

_Set the forest on fire... or don't set the forest on fire... With pyro-related decisions as crucial as this, I believe it is essential to ask oneself that obligatory, hypothetical question: What would Ragnaros do?_

-----------------

_Note: Omen is a two headed, wolf-like demigod whose spirit rises from Lake Elune'ara during the Lunar Festival.  
_  
-----------------

"Frizzle frazzle wizzle wop, a gnome named Preston Pixelpop. Stronger than iron and slicker than sleet, never met a Hordie he couldn't beat. Flicked a tauren in the eye, took his horns and made him cry. Punched a red orc in the spleen, made him sick and turned him green. Bopped a troll right on the nose, he ran so fast he lost three toes. Kicked an undead in the shin, he slunk to his grave and crawled back in. But there was one he never beat, wanting to rest his weary feet but unable to climb upon his seat, a tall barstool claimed his defeat!"

The gnomish children's rhyme brought a fond smile to Lilam's cherubic face as she tossed another stick into the pile. She had found the empty silence of the woods rather disturbing. Not for any real reason, but for a gnome, extended periods of quiet were equivalent to nails on a chalkboard. And Lilam had no trouble dispelling said silence with her own amusement. Another rhyme was prepared to be belted out in a similar fashion as the first, but the warrior held her breath instead, the sound of a snapping twig making her tense instinctively.

Lilam placed a hand on the hilt of her sword, calling out brashly, "Hello? Anyone out there hear that twig snap, or was it just me?"

Nothing.

_Hmm, I thought that would work... I guess they're smarter than I think I am..._

Either way, Lilam had enough sense in her curly head not to go rushing into the thick brush head on swinging her sword around like a deadly weed whacker, so she began collecting sticks once more, straining to hear if anything moved. She managed to gather enough sticks and tie the bundle without incident. Nothing stirred at all, and the gnome began to wonder if she hadn't just been hearing things to begin with.

With a half-hearted shrug to herself, Lilam gathered the bundle into her arms and turned to head back to the campsite. She had only taken one step forward before something large came hurtling out of the shadowed greenery right behind her. The sticks were instantly dropped and quickly sword drawn as Lilam whipped herself around, fairly certain that that particular sound had not been mere imagination.

The wolf's growl was low and drawn out in warning, exposing his blackened gums in a toothy snarl. Lilam didn't even bother removing her shield. A hungry canine was hardly a fearsome opponent. However, right before Lilam could charge forward, the wolf slunk back, tucking it's tail between it's legs then darting in the other direction, yipping like a scared pup. For a split second, Lilam thought that was the coolest thing ever.

"Ha! He probably saw my warriorific warrior spirit and knew it was hopeless to pick a fight with Lilam Firesparks!"

That split second ended quickly.

"Wait a spitquick second... " Something was very familiar about the situation. Too familiar.

"Either I have just become the scariest and warriorest pink haired warrior that ever warriored before... or there's something big, mean and scary right behind me..."

Lilam swallowed as if it were the hardest thing she'd ever done. Her feet didn't seem to want to cooperate, so instead, she tilted her sword ever so slightly and peered at the reflective surface. She wanted to frown and cry out, "Why is it never the first one?!" but could only manage a soft grunt of surprise as the ground rushed up to meet her...

* * *

Ferry clapped his hands together, shattering the invisible layer of ice that had froze over them. He gave his creation a good look over. There was something missing. When it hit him, he chuckled. At least he assumed it was a chuckle. He could have been coughing up one of his intact lungs, both acts sounded about the same anyway

Tilting the ice sculpture forward, the mage stabbed a finger into each of the figure's cheeks. Dimples. Ferry leaned back and examined his work. It was a mini sculpture that bared a faint resemblance to Lilam, dimples and all, which Ferry was both surprised and proud at how well it had turned out. There was something soothing and relaxing about sculpting from ice... and interesting enough, these feelings were felt even deeper as he nonchalantly kicked the ice-Lilam into the fire.

The fire hissed angrily, yet couldn't drown out Ferry's cackling. It felt good to laugh. Satisfied, he rose from his seat, his bones rattling in the process.

"I should probably go search for that gnome... she should be good and dead right about now and ripe for some good, old fashion corpse looting."

It was about that moment he realized there was someone behind him, eyes boring into the back of his head. Lilam or Trisana would have announced their arrival.

"Either there's a lost group of plump gnomish children behind me... or it's someone about to be reduced to nothing but permafrost."

With that being said, he whirled around, arms outstretched. _Why is it never the first one_, he thought grumpily to himself. His hands began to take on that distinctive blue countenance and he thrusts his fingers forward to unleash... nothing but a pathetic wisp of fog. He had drained his mana while using his magic to build the ice sculpture.

"Fine time I picked to try and develop a talent other than recreational murder."

At times like this Ferry turned to prayer.

_O Dark Lady of the Unholy Shadow, please do NOT let anyone I know hear me scream like a little sissy girl_...

Her feet were heavy, requiring concentrated effort for each labored step forward, but not quite as burdensome as the convoluted disarray settled in the deep trenches of her mind. Each moment spent in that dense, unfamiliar forest left Trisana a painful reminder that she was no longer home. No longer near her parent's love or protection. And more importantly, no longer disgracefully ignorant with foolish dreams of studying the druidic ways. All of those were long gone, either severed by distance or enlightenment, yet gone all the same.

Lilam's words were still buzzing in her ears, but couldn't seem to overpower the Arch Druid's which repeated loud and precise, bellowing deep with truth Trisana cared not to admit she recognized as such. She wrapped her cloak around tighter, gazing dolefully into the jade colored sphere atop her staff as her thoughts wandered once more to her dilemma.

_With the way Ellisah and those two men are pursuing me, I don't think I'll be able to stay with Lariel without risking her life or being found. If I can't stay... where will I go? What will I do?_

Her gaze lowered to the mulched undergrowth she was trudging through. _I could just give up now and let Ellisah take me back; I would be able to see mother and father again, and maybe they can convince the Arch Druid of my innocence._

A hand hugged her cloak closer, guiltily. _But then, what would Lanrith's sacrifice been for? And Lilam? And Liladris? And Kyanr? All their kindness and selflessness would be all for nothing..._

Her thoughts dispersed and faded away as a warm, bluish glow spilled across the forest floor before her. She knew the source of the unearthly illumination even before she lifted her head and set her eyes upon the lonely moonwell up ahead. The familiar sight was refreshing, yet also tinged with a twinge of sadness. From what Trisana could see, there was no one nearby, so she made her way to the glowing pool hesitantly.

Her reflection mirrored the cyclone of emotions she could not put voice to as the pulsing waters painted her features a calming azure.

_What should I do? Who am I to believe? Lilam or the Arch Druid? My father or Kal'dorei law? Liladris or Ellisah? Is it worth endangering others for my sake? If I surrender, will everyone's efforts have been in vain?_

Her undulated copy offered no answers, but an unannounced presence did see it fit to respond.

"They say that moonwells have prophetic abilities. The tale goes that if someone strips the bark of a moonwillow tree, grinds the bark into a powder, sets it out beneath the sky during a full moon, a half moon and a new moon and sprinkles the powder in a moonwell, that a person may see their future in its waters."

Trisana stumbled two steps back at the voice, startled by the sudden arrival of the speaker. The blood elf appeared not to be aware of the girl's shock as he was peering intently into the moonwell as he spoke, rather than looking to Trisana.

"If the person sees a full moon, then their greatest desire will become a reality." He continued casually as if they had been in conversation the entire time. "If the moon is waxing, then fortune will outweigh the misfortune in that person's life. If the moon is waning, then misfortune will outweigh fortune in that person's life. And if there is nothing, a new moon, then without fail, that person will meet their demise in the imminent future."

Trisana wound her fingers tighter around the width of her staff as the scarlet hued elf untied a small pouch from his waist, loosened the string cinching it shut and emptied the glittering contents into the moonwell. Finished with this task, the man finally lifted his fel green eyes to Trisana's face as if seeing her for the first time, gesturing to the rippled water.

"Now, what do you see?"

The request was hardly forceful, spoken softly and without urgency, sounding curious if anything. However tempted Trisana was to take a peek at the water, she refrained, not willing to let her eyes leave the mysterious elf for even a second.

"What do you want?" Her voice came out steady enough although her shaking hands gave her away.

The man seemed unfazed either way, more interested in the soft glow reflecting from the moonwell and splaying across his gold and red plate. "I mean you no harm, although I doubt my word means anything to you. There are far more sinister beings out here than I that you should be more concerned about."

Trisana's staff remained securely in her hands. "Who are you?", she inquired, keeping her eyes glued on the armored elf. A tepid night breeze shifted the tips of the man's spiked, sunset orange hair, and for the briefest of moments, Trisana wondered how the hair remained in such a unique style.

"Do you think it fair to ask that question when you yourself cannot answer it?", he answered in a deliberate manner, his face betraying no emotions.

Trisana froze. _Either that was an extremely lucky guess... or he can read minds!_

Noting the look on the girl's face, the sin'dorei added, "Typically, when one fails to hear someone approach them, in this case, you, it denotes that the person is deep in thought. Deep thought is normally centered on some form of identity dissonance. It was an educated guess."

It took a moment for Trisana to speak up once more; the man's words were intriguing, inviting further conversation and most of all, distracting. It would be easy to get caught up in his eloquent speech and vague replies, which Trisana wanted to avoid lest she let her guard down.

"I don't care if it's fair or not, who are you and more importantly, what do you want?"

The man's eyes lingered on her face for an uneasy moment. "Will you not look into the moonwell?"

Trisana frowned, becoming increasingly frustrated by his question dodging. "How is it that you can speak Common?"

The elf's eyes descended to the pool, and he assessed himself in the reflective surface. "Despite how I may look to you, I am far older than I appear."

His gaze met hers across the moonwell as he added in smooth Darnassian, "Far older."

This direct answer curbed some of Trisana's exasperation, although it gave her little information in the long run.

"Are you going to answer my other questions?", she urged, hoping to receive another direct answer.

The man seemed to consider this. "I would, but you haven't asked the right ones yet."

"And what would a 'right' question be?"

"I'm to assume that the wellbeing of your friends means nothing to you?"

Trisana's heart caught in her throat and wedged itself in good and tight. "What have you done to them?"

This amused the blood elf, a small smirk breaking across his formally sober features. "As much as I am flattered by the accusation, I have done nothing to your companions." His smirk disappeared. "As I said before, Trisana, there are far more sinister beings out here than I that you should be more concerned about."

Uncertain of the validity of the man's words, Trisana hesitated, searching the elf's veiled gaze, then turned to hurry back to the campsite for fear that Lilam (and Ferry to some minuscule extent) were in danger. She had only taken one step forward before coming to a complete stop.

_Did he... say my name? I never said my name..._

Trisana spun around, mouth open in preparation to demand an explanation... but there was no one there. The man was no where to be seen. Her eyes instead fell upon the moonwell, remembering the man's words. It would only take a second to steal a peek at the swirling water, a second to spot if a moon appeared, and a second to then be on her way.

The water's surface came into view, and her eyes rounded, widening. However, whether this was a reaction from the water reflection or the unexpected eruption of pain in the back of her head was indeterminable. The world was lost to her even before she fell into waiting arms...

* * *

He waited until they were gone to once again reveal himself to the world, watching the still forest until his suspicions were cleared. Lost in thought, the man slowly glided over to the moonwell, kneeling down and reaching out as if to disturb the water, but pausing just above the surface.

For a long, breathless passage of time, he stared into the water, his face a mask devoid of any feeling. When he moved once again, it was to reach out once more toward the pool and this time flick his fingers across the surface, creating an elliptical of ripples.

"Naught but a fabricated legend of pure Kal'dorei rubbish," he growled lowly to himself.

He then rose to his feet, and began walking towards the woods, eyes gazing ahead at what could not be seen.

* * *

"And you're absolutely positive that this will work?" Ellisah fought to keep her hood in place as a wailing gust snatched at her cloak and sent blinding waves of sand searching for any exposed skin creases or crevices to settle snuggly inside.

"Absopositively certain!" Smeed assured, patting a grunting kodo on the leg for emphasis. "You know you can trust me, I've done this sorta' thing before; I'm what you'd call a 'professional'."

The druidess turned her head, masking her cynicism well as she lifted a hand to her brow, scoping the barren dunes and tempestuous sky until both bleak expanses met and melded into one on the horizon.

"Professional or not, I will not accept failure. It is not just your neck on the line here, goblin. This is not just a matter of pride, but of duty, and should this duty be unfulfilled due to incompetence on your part, I give you my word that I will not only personally see to it that you endure a death of a thousand sufferings, but I will turn you inside out, return your spirit to what was once your body, and revel in killing you once more as I watch you die from the inside, only wishing that you could scream with inverted lips."

There was an edge to Ellisah's tone as she spoke, a subtle growl that added a feral harshness to her words and as well as grim conviction. Smeed's face remained a mask of indifference and impudent moxie, but his thoughts were conceived from something more sardonic in nature.

_And I thought druids were all tree huggin' yodels with a personal vendetta against soap and water... Must not have hugged enough trees when she was just a little psychopath._

"Rest assured," the goblin insisted with a cocky grin smeared across his greasy face, "The job'll be done to your specifications, without fail. You have my word."

Ellisah reached into the depths of her cloak, removing a small, tan pouch from within. Tossing the money pouch to Smeed, which contained half of the amount they had agreed upon, the druidess turned, speaking above the angry winds.

"You have given me your word and I have given you mine. It would be in your best interest to honor yours, Smeed, or I _will _honor mine."

Ellisah left then, leaving a dark presence hovering over Scrabblescrew's Camp for a long time after that.

* * *

"And you're absolutely positive they went this way?" Anishar tightened his lazy grip on reins of his mount, beginning to doubt the tracking skills of his companion as the hazy night drew longer.

"I know Stonetalon like your fist knows the back of of my head," said Falerian. "But we did lose a lot of daylight hiding from those goblins."

Snorting, the rogue rolled his eyes. "Maybe _you _were hiding, but it's common knowledge that rogues don't hide; we 'avoid detection using deceptive methods of stealth'."

"Don't you hum your own theme song though? Not really 'deceptive', if you ask me."

"It helps put me in 'stealth mode'; just doesn't feel right without it. Besides, you can hardly even hear it once the disemboweling starts," Anishar scoffed without missing a beat. "But I wonder what had those green goofs all worked up... "

There was a delay in Falerian's response as he took a moment to search within his pack, remove an apple and munch on it thoughtfully. "It probably has nothing to do with the three we're following. I'm more concerned that we haven't run into my princess puddy tat of pain. I bet she's thinking of me right now..."

"... and throwing up a little in her throat. Not to mention there's a good possibility that we're gonna' have to kill your 'precious' crazy cat lady. What then, Casanova?"

The hunter mulled over this for the briefest of seconds before replying with a mouth full of apple mush, "Make sure I get a pre-nup?"

"... Don't talk with your mouth open."

Falerian became confused. "Don't you mean 'don't talk with my mouth _full_?" he corrected matter-of-factly.

"No, I'm pretty sure I had it right the first time."

The mountain trail grew thick with an overbearing silence as Anishar delved within his private thoughts in his only escape from his gun toting friend, and Falerian continued to sink his fangs into the crisp fruit.

"You know..." Falerian began, tossing the apple core over his shoulder, which Petunia immediately pounced upon and gobbled up greedily. "... two guys… alone on a mountain. It's kinda… what's the word I'm looking for…"

"Disturbing? I was thinking the same thing."

"Naw, not disturbing. I was thinking more along the lines of... you know, manly. Rugged. Comforting.. secure..."

Anishar veered his frostsaber in the opposite direction of Falerian's. "Alright, that's it; we're not sharing the same tent now."

The hunter blinked in confusion. "Why would we share the same tent in the first place?"

"Because we only _have _one tent, you oaf. I only packed one for myself, and since you conveniently forgot yours, I was gonna' share, but you have officially weirded me out and I will pitch the tent through your skull before letting you set foot in it."

Falerian shrugged, not offended in the least. "Fine by me. I can always snuggle with Petunia. But I don't know why you're getting so worked up about sharing a tent; I heard that cowboys used to do it all the time."

"Cow... boys? You mean, tauren?" Anishar replied, turning up his nose slightly. "Tauren were always kinda' fruity anyway. But regardless, I ain't no cowboy."

Silence again.

"You know, when we're not in the midst of a devious plot to blackmail the Archdruid and all," Falerian said, speaking through the silence, "We should come back to Stonetalon and fish or something."

Anishar sighed, rolled his eyes, smacked his palm to his forehead, and finally shook his head, unable to even finish the sentence he began in hopes to quell the nagging urge for violence that was steadily rising.

"Falerian, I swear..."

--------------

**Note**: _Smeed Scrabblescrew and Scrabblescrew's Camp were not my creations; they are owned by Blizzard Entertainment and appear in World of Warcraft. Kudos for those people who knew that before this note. )_

_-----------------_

Trisana recovered from her momentary paralysis with a violent shake of her head, then tugged at Lilam's arm with everything she had into it, pulling her free from the treant's knurled digits. Both girls stumbled, attempting to bargain for immunity to the law of gravity, but inevitably wound up in a tanged pile near Ferry's feet.

"Hey, you're the glowy eyed things that snuck up on me and knocked me into unconscientiousness" Lilam blurted out loudly, removing her elbow from Trisana's ribcage.

"In light that I had nothing to do with any of this, considering that these two are to blame for my unwelcome trouncing through enemy territory as their temporary, traveling prisoner, I would like to express how I think we can come to a calm, rational resolution," said Ferry, speaking in a rare moment of diplomacy.

Or so it seemed.

"Lilam and Trisana, hanging from a tree, c-h-o-k-i-n-g."

This quickly prompted Trisana to dislodge Lilam's knee from her cheek and interject before the preservationist mage be allowed to spread more slanderous half-truths.

"We meant no harm nor disrespect by stopping in your woods for the night," she explained to the ominous sea of unblinking eyes. "If you could only tell us what wrong we've committed, we'd be more than happy to apologize and do what we can to make amends."

The thick blackness of night settled heavily upon the trio, twisting and contorting the shadowy nature guardians into one, multi-eyed wraith wrought from Nightmare. Lilam rubbed her arm absentmindedly. One of the Sons of Cenarius took a generous step toward the cage, replying in a voice rich with untold age and wisdom:

"You have done no wrong."

A sigh of relief surfaced from Trisana's pounding chest. "Since we haven't done anything to offend, if you could just let us out and--"

The Keeper cut her off brusquely, growling in his gruff Common, "You will not be released."

With her heart sinking fast like a dingy with a hull breach, Trisana sat up on her knees, gripping a bone on either side of her as she leaned forward against the cage.

"Why not?!" she shouted, giving the cage bars a violent shake in confused frustration.

The Keeper who had spoke before appeared unfazed, and merely pointed a long, root-like finger at the moonless expanse above.

"This marks the night where Elune conceals herself from this world and Cenarius' shadow shrouds the earth. It is the night of the feast, where Cenarius' children partake of the fruit of mortality for strength and longevity."

Three blank faces blinked in befuddlement.

"That means... there's gonna' be a party?" Lilam attempted to guess, all but confused by the fey creature's words.

"It means we are going to eat you," was the chillingly nonchalant reply.

As one would expect, this didn't sit well with the three captives -- mainly Lilam, who had often been told that she was "cute enough to eat" but hadn't really taken it seriously. Trisana was at a loss for words, unable to piece together a response. This endowed Ferry with the opportunity for the first reply to the disturbing declaration from the Keeper.

"... You wanna' go halfsies on the gnome?"

Trisana sputtered and jerk about towards the forsaken, yelling, "Ferry!", although more so in anger than shock.

"Hey, if you wanted in on the halfsies you should have spoken up sooner; you snooze, you lose," the mage said as if her reaction was silly and unnecessary.

"And what makes you think that you are exempt from this?" interrupted the Keeper, his eyes narrowing in on Ferry.

"Dryads and Keepers and Treants, oh my, they're going to use me to pick their teeth. The horror," Ferry rasped sarcastically, wearing a bemused grin. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't laugh in your face until I forget what I'm laughing about, suddenly remember, and laugh again."

"You will be torn apart and your bones used to construct another cage as a lasting mockery, scourge abomination."

"Oh, real mature. Just because I am living impaired does NOT mean that I'm part of the scourge, despite that fact that I may or may not commit acts that possibly could seem to be scourge-like. You may think that all undead look alike, but we don't, okay? That's racial stereotyping and I'd just like to add that that makes you a racist. And who are you calling 'abomination'? At least I don't look like the freakish outcome of a Night Elf party that got way out of hand."

While it was hard to determine if the cantankerous mage had actually been offended by the Keeper's quip or not, it became glaringly apparent to Trisana that he completely lacked the capacity for diplomacy and it would be a good time to cut him off before he dug their graves any deeper than they already were.

"This doesn't make any sense! You all are supposed to be the peace keepers and guardians of these woods, not monsters who prey on the innocent," she stated, hoping to reason with their silent captors.

"Yeah, and I thought you were supposed to eat other stuff, not people," Lilam added, trying to help.

At this, a dryad scoffed, answering snappishly with, "And what are we _suppose _to eat then? Leaves and twigs?"

The warrior glanced at a nearby treant, who shook a leafy fist at her in indignation.

"Oh yeah. Sorry. Never mind then."

This seemed to mark the end of the conversation, as the crowd gathered outside of the cage began to move in closer, leaving nary a hope for escape. Things were looking hopelessly grim, an it was up to Ferry to offer a word of encouragement in the face of such a strange, yet dire situation.

"This is why I don't like the living; you say you don't want to be like us, yet you go around killing and eating each other just like we do," said Ferry. "Forsaken don't go around breathing and feeling emotions like the living, so don't do what we do. Hypocrites."

Whether either of the two girls heard this (or paid it any mind) was sketchy, as Trisana withdrew into herself, unable to even lift her head as she began to whisper to the warrior, "Lilam, I'm sorry--"

"Don't give up hope just yet, Trissy," Lilam jumped in before Trisana could go on, and sprightly hopping onto her feet. Outstretching her hands, the gnome cracked her knuckles loudly before positioning herself into a fighting stance, all signs of fatigue and weariness undetectable.

"If there's a will, there's a way. And I know someone named Will, so we should be good. Even if I have to fight my way out to find Will, I'll find a way!"

Trisana wanted to be as unswervingly optimistic as Lilam (albeit that seemed impossible), but she wasn't even given the opportunity to try as the cage door was ripped open and twisted, groping hands reached inside. It wasn't long before a symphony of screams was induced by the fire that popped and crackled gleefully as it cooked it's ingredients to perfection.

* * *

And said ingredients just happened to be the very flammable mob outside the cage. With no determinable origin or sufficing forewarning, the fire swept across the living kindling like dragon's breath. Treants with curled and blackened limbs flailed helplessly, trying to outrun the pursuing flames. Cenarius' children darted and scrambled about like decapitated fowls, causing more bodily harm to themselves than the actual fire. When all was said and done, it was an appalling sight to behold. Except to Ferry.

Rather, it served to remind him of his barbequing apron an acquaintance had given him, which said, "Kiss the Cook… then Get The Plague and Die". Which explained the disturbingly cheerful smile that would have rosy-ed his cheeks (had he any left) that left Lilam and Trisana not only baffled by the mysterious fire, but creeped out.

"What?" Ferry asked, mildly defensive. "Regretfully, I had nothing to do with this."

Trisana shook her head. "Never mind. Let's just get out of here while we're able!"

The first to skip out of the cage, Lilam, of course, tripped and tackled the ground head first. For once, however, she hadn't just tripped over air.

"My pack! And my sword! And Trissy's staff!"

Lilam snatched up her personal belongings, hugging her sword a little too tight for Trisana's comfort.

"Hurry and cut my bonds, flesh-ball," the forsaken insisted, offering his bound hands to the gnome.

"Alrighty, one second…"

Almost immediately, Ferry began to have second thoughts.

"… Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Lilam scoffed at the mage's lack of faith. "Sure I do! I'm a professional warrioring warrior. Now hold still so I don't sword you by accident."

"… That's your shield."

"… Well, they both start with 's'; sometimes I get them confused."

Ferry made a noise somewhere between a grunt and sigh, turning to Trisana. "You. Use my dagger and cut me loose. I require both hands freed in order to strangle the stupidity out of the gnome."

It was too hot, too asphyxiating, too dangerous to argue at the time being, so Trisana complied, cutting the undead free and gathering her own belongings. As the trio prepared to make their escape, Trisana hesitated, the fingers tightly entwined around her staff just noticeably trembling.

"We can't… we can't just leave them and the forest to burn."

The knot in her stomach clenched, and breathing suddenly became a much more difficult task than before.

"It just… doesn't feel right."

"That's funny," Ferry said, drolly. "Feels alright to me. In fact, I have that warm, fuzzy feeling. You know, like the one you get when you kick a puppy in the face. Yeah, you know what I mean. That one."

There was something to Trisana's words that cooled Lilam's mind like a white rain, causing the warrior to take pause and let her gaze linger for just a moment on the soft-spoken girl. And then, the moment was gone.

"Merry can do somethin' about the fire, right?" she asked the forsaken, peeling her eyes from Trisana.

"Eh, I don't know." The mage absentmindedly stroked his chin. "It entirely undermines the environmental campaign I happen to support. You know, 'only you can prevent people from preventing forest fires'."

"Wheee! Then I get to play with the wishy-ring and make Gerry do what I want!"

"… I'll do it. Bully."

Mumbling under his breath, Ferry lifted his hands, directing them towards the raging fire and panicking forest dwellers. He hated to destroy such a beautiful scene, but in lieu of being pulled about like a puppet by Lilam, he could endure the loss. A frigid chill snaked through his arms, collecting and coagulating in his palms, coating his fingers in a thin layer of frost.

Whereas fire magic always begged to be released, stubbornly unwilling to be restrained, much less controlled, frost magic waited obediently, patiently cradled in his hands, but threatened to crystallize the unnatural life flowing through him. Without warning, Winter's icy breath burst forth from his palms, blinding all in a blizzard of white.

The frosted brume dissipated, and all returned to black and shadows once more. A slick coating of ice clung to everything, leaving the treants and fey creatures frozen in place, immobile. Ferry cleared his throat, unwilling to admit that he used a bit too much magic.

"Er…They'll thaw by morning."

Tugging on Trisana's sleeve, Lilam looked up to her friend's face, inquiring, "Is this good, Trissy?"

Giving the gnome a small nod, she tousled Lilam's untamed curls, replying, "I feel much better now. Thank you."

"And yet again, even though I'm the one doing all the work, my efforts go unappreciated," the mage pointed out, trailing behind the other two as they began to put some distance between them and the frosted forest. "It's a crying shame that my talent is wasted on a pair of thankless delinquents. With my people, it is customary to offer the first born child of the person's enemy in thanks. Nothing makes you feel more appreciated than a little bundle of flammable epidermis to warm an old forsaken's bones on a cold, winter's night."

"I wonder who started that fire…" Trisana mused, aptly ignoring Ferry. She was becoming quite good at blocking out his macabre comments. Her thoughts wandered to the Sin'dorei from earlier, wondering if he had any part in the unexplained fire. However, a loud yawn from Lilam redirected her focus.

"Oh well, I guess we can worry about that later. Let's find somewhere to rest without getting imprisoned and nearly killed in the process."

Now beyond exhaustion and intent on finding a suitable place to collapse into a dream-less coma, the three fugitives remained unaware of the wild eyes following their movements until they became one with the night, the eyes blinking into nonexistence shortly after.

* * *


End file.
